


Personal Effects

by Bravehardt, Foxglove_Fiction



Series: Effects [3]
Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Don't copy to another site, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Misunderstandings, Resolved Sexual Tension, Sexual Humor, Sexual Tension, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, boys on dates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-19
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-24 20:46:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 52,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18169673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bravehardt/pseuds/Bravehardt, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foxglove_Fiction/pseuds/Foxglove_Fiction
Summary: Without the unnecessary distractions of rampant and uncontrollable hormonal urges onset by stray alien influences, Tony and Stephen take their time to finally explore the more intimate side of their proposed relationship. Unfortunately not everything that glimmers is gold and the two of them soon realize that there is so much more below just surface-level interaction that drives a good relationship. Each of them have their own crosses to bear and old habits die hard.Turns out dating a hero really is a challenge.





	1. Cold Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> In the spirit of finally acknowledging some very deep mutual feelings, Tony sets a date to take Stephen on a very unique and unconventional outing. With enough time spent alone it could only mean that eventually some equally intimate truths are brought to light - for better or for worse - as the two explore their pasts and how exactly they'd come to harbor feelings for one-another. 
> 
> Between Tony not quite dressing appropriately for their venture, needing to huddle in for warmth and share body-heat, he also finds out, to his delight, that Stephen has a particular soft side for creature comforts.

A date had been planned but not exactly set; feelings had been brought to light but that didn’t necessarily make anything much less complicated than before. With old barriers torn down, new ones would be sure to form in their place as life’s natural ebb and flow was ever present and in motion.

It had taken a lot off of Tony’s chest to hear his feelings were returned - and thank the little silver lining on the dark cloud pertaining to their odd little episode with those spores because despite the aggravation and certain predicaments it presented, it yielded a rich emotional breakthrough for the two men.

The events were replayed in slow motion in Tony’s mind as he remembered them, a tape repeating over and over as he fondly reminisced. He could have happily done without getting sick but he _wouldn’t_ have given that up knowing it would bear such fruits.

Tony had managed to keep himself completely occupied with work since the events. He’d been meaning to reconnect with Stephen and set an actual date to meet up again - even had the location and trip planned out but it was taking that last step and actually committing that presented the most difficulty for him.

For one, he was anxious about where exactly to go from there - anxious that even now that all the cards were out on the table perhaps he may not be suitable for Stephen’s needs. On top of that he had cold feet, that new and awkward phase after starting to date someone, wondering if this was actually _right for them? For him? What if he messed up? What if the place he chose to take Stephen was too much?_

Droves of questions presenting themselves.

He’d been working on a _small_ gift - a ring. He had the idea with Stephen’s hand in mind as kind of a therapeutic device - like stress balls of a sort. A ring with a magnetizing counterbalance inside of it using his own personal technology; as they spun they would create an opposite force to give the wrist a workout. And just like those, he implemented a softer more therapeutic function into the ring.

Tony might have been getting ahead of himself with the type of gift that he’d be offering Stephen, but to the engineer it was a piece of himself that he was giving and it wasn’t like these were new feelings either. They’d just recently admitted to their feelings but that didn’t mean he hadn’t been harboring said feelings for months prior.

Finishing off the polished ring - he held it up. A shiny platinum band with a hollow core, set with magnetic ball-bearings and inscribed with stylized floral patterns. It held a certain Indian aesthetic as it shone under the light of his crafting station. He slipped it onto a simple gold chain and tucked it into a case.

He was going to commit. It had been a few weeks since the events so it was about time that he set these plans in motion.

Picking up his phone he hovered over the texting application, drawing the courage after staring at the phone screen a few times to finally message Stephen with a time and place.

* * *

Stephen arrived at the compound about ten minutes before he and Tony were scheduled to meet. He had dressed warmly, much more warmly than he had any right to in New York at this time of year anyway - and to minimize any odd suspicions from the other Avengers should they see him in the facility, he'd used a simple glamour spell to appear as though all he wore were his typical robes. He knocked gently on the door that lead to Tony's apartment.  
  
In the past few weeks their interactions had been limited to fleeting texts and missed calls, and it had begun to wear on Stephen. He'd started to wonder if Tony had really been in the right frame of mind to make statements he'd made - if maybe he'd begun regretting things after that, or hadn't been wholly truthful at the time. It felt like he was now trying to put things off.

It wasn't as though Tony was the only one to consider in the equation though. Stephen had a lot of things on his plate and wasn't exactly the most well known for responding to texts or always having his cellphone on hand - given such things didn't exactly work _everywhere he went._   
  
In the end Tony had proposed a date and despite Stephen's uncertainties about their touch-and-go communications since the spore incident and Stephen's lack of enthusiasm when it came to cold, frozen environments. He was still excited and anxious about the whole concept.

A lot had gone unexplored in their last two encounters, regardless of how much new information _had_ been brought to light. It had been a period of quiet comfort and understanding, not any kind of active date and really he had no idea what it would mean to be on an actual _date_ with Tony - especially given his prior insistence that they'd had dates already.

“Hello Doctor, come right in, Tony is just getting ready.” Friday let Stephen in with a warm morning greeting, the door to his quarters opening.

"Good morning Friday," Stephen greeted the AI quietly with a small smile as he made his way in, not rushing his search for Tony too much as he took a look around the apartment for a few moments.

Tony was on the last leg of putting on dressing his gear, something much more slimmed down and efficient in terms of warmth. A light looking white and black jacket with a faux-fur-trimmed hood, snow pants with a modern design to them as if Tony was fresh off the ski slopes. Underneath it all a tight black turtleneck and under-armor to keep his attire from chaffing. He was doing up his coat and putting on some gloves when as Stephen walked in.  
  
“I hope you are ready to do some walking out in the cold...” Tony gave Stephen a once-over with some sort of half teasing half scrutinizing look. “I did tell you to dress warmly, didn’t I?” He chirped and cleared the space between them, putting his hands on Stephen’s arms and leaning up to put a quick greeting kiss on his cheek.  As he watched the brunette approach, the sorcerer could only smile a bit to himself at the man's quip, before gently returning the cheek kiss.

It seemed like a shy gesture before Tony’s expression turned to confusion - presumably because the illusion was only visual and Tony was more than capable of feeling the fabric of the hefty outer-wear through the concealing spell Stephen had.  
  
"It's good to see you, too." Stephen chuckled, casting an admiring glance over the other's much more form-fitting attire - he looked _really good_.

Stephen, on the other hand, was a mess under his illusion and he knew it. Most of his attire didn't match - green layered atop blue, a hint of pink, and even yellow gloves - and with the several layers of warmth he'd pulled on, topped with a coat that felt like it might have been a thick suede and faux-fur, Stephen looked like a very colourful marshmallow more than he resembled a human being.

As far as Stephen was concerned warmth was preferable to _looking_ good. Ideally it would have been the classy Winter Olympics look that Tony had gone for, but they weren't exactly on the same field when it came to the availability of warm clothing.   
  
"I hope 'shuffling' is an acceptable substitute for 'walking'... I've never been much good in the snow and I can only imagine that pulling a full Legolas and walking _on top_ of the snow would be cause for some funny looks."

“Honestly I think people seeing you out there with nothing on at all but that tunic will draw _almost_ just as much attention to you on that front.” Tony chuckled softly. He gave Stephen a squeeze as though he was testing _just how many layers_ he had on.

"The appearance of the robes was for the sake of your cohabitants. I can only assume that my showing up doing my best snowman impression would have led to questions..." Though, on second thought, it wasn't as though any of the Avengers expected normalcy from the sorcerer at this point. He supposed it was just as likely they'd roll their eyes at the strange wizard being strange again and shrug it off. But he'd certainly prefer to keep from being viewed as any _more_ peculiar than they already thought he was.   
  
“It won’t be a concern, it’s night time where we are going, and you won’t have a lot of eyes on you. Plus! If you want me to outfit you in something like what I have, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing you in something more _skin tight_ , it would certainly be _my_ pleasure!” Tony winked at him with a grin and started to rifle around for his phone, coming up with some photos on screen of the resort he planned to take Stephen to.   
  
Stephen’s gaze settled on Tony's face thoughtfully at the man's offer, watching him even as he focused on his phone.

Tony _did_ look good.

Honestly, it was outright unfair how gorgeous Tony managed to look in his cold weather gear and as dates went Stephen was definitely more on the side of warmth than either comfort _or_ attractiveness.

There was something reassuring about the notion that they wouldn't be somewhere particularly public if only because it meant his absurd amount of layers would remain a thing of less public spectacle... _Or_ he could take Tony up on his offer.   
  
The engineer held up the phone to Stephen so he could see the different photos on screen and began to flip through them.

"So, I don't know how your portalling abilities work, I'm going out on a limb - an educated guess so to speak and assuming you can travel to places based on what you know about them. So if I show you a picture is that good enough? If not, I've got a Quinjet ready to go that will get us there only a few hours later than expected..."

"How mobile ought I be preparing to be? I'm not wholly certain what the plan is, but I will admit that I'm not exactly at my most maneuverable in my cocoon," Stephen confessed after a moment of contemplation, before being distracted by the phone images.  
  
Flipping thoughtfully through the images, Stephen nodded.

"I can get us there without any problems. Pictures are usually sufficient as long as there's something stand-out about the location. If you sent me a picture of the middle of a forest somewhere... that would be more of a challenge."

“Noooo no-no-no we are going to a resort, and the only walking we will be doing is on plowed or shoveled pathways, so don’t worry your _pretty_ little head about being an inchworm in the middle of winter…” Tony chuckled a little, bringing up the first initial image after he’d shown Stephen the image-set.   
  
“We’re going to Kakslauttanen in Finland to watch the northern lights and just… go stargazing, to get _away_ from it all.” He started, “There’s other things I had planned as well, if it’s not too underwhelming for your tastes, doc.” He smiled sheepishly, but it still managed to hold that air of confidence to it - that uneasy air of searching to please that never failed to surprise Stephen when it came from Tony.   
  
_Stargazing_.

That wasn't a thing he'd expected from Tony to say the least. The notion was quiet, romantic and rather sweet. Something he could _probably_ manage in his overdressed state. Except maybe if they were going to cuddle up close whilst doing their stargazing... there was a certain protective barrier the clothes created that might cause issues there.

“You don't need to hide your cold-weather outfit, I’m sure it’s not that bad…” He hinted as he softly elbowed Stephen’s much-too-padded side.

Sighing heavily, Stephen allowed the façade of his robes to fade away, making it perfectly clear that _it was a pretty bad look_. The hood of his coat was down at least, creating a fluffy ruffle behind the sorcerer's head and if he was all in white he might have made for a more pleasant - if Michelin Man-esque - sight, but there was a distinct lack of coordination between the colours he wore.

On the plus side, he certainly _looked_ warm. Maybe too warm for the temperature controlled compound.   
  
"As long as we're not skiing or snowboarding or doing anything of that ilk I'm sure I'll manage..." After a brief moment of hesitation, he chuckled softly to himself. There would be no losing either of them in the snow, with Stephen's distinctly unnatural colour pallet, and Tony's mostly dark monochrome. "But I think I'm well enough dressed for laying around in the snow watching the stars." 

Tony stared at Stephen’s mismatched attire and he couldn’t help but let a small suppressed giggle escape. Walking into Stephen and face-planting into his jacket as he embraced him.

“I think you look absolutely perfect, I wouldn’t mind being patient and having the privilege of stripping each of those layers off.” He winked with that ever-present grin. “And it’s not like you have to keep it on all the time, I booked one night at the resort, we can stay longer if you want, I’m sure I could weasel an extra day or two out of them if needed.” He finally let go of Stephen, if a little reluctantly.

"Oh...?" Stephen inquired softly, briefly returning the hug before Tony withdrew. "There really are a lot of layers... are you _sure_ you have that kind of patience?"   
  
Romantic stargazing was apparently only a small part of the plan. A night together at a resort, wherein Tony intended to strip him of his layers was definitely a different picture from what Stephen had been anticipating. Really, perhaps he _should have_ anticipated that.

"I suppose we'll wait and see what we need. I'm surprised it's the resort you're concerned about rather than your work schedule, given how busy you've been..." His hands raised to create a simple portal once he was certain that Tony was satisfied with his current appearance, before offering a yellow-gloved hand to his date. "Shall we?"

“I mean, if the invitation is open…” Tony lowered his head but raised his eyebrows suggestively as if that was a sort of mock invitation. “If you wanted to time me, I’m sure I could make it record getting you out of those layers and completely _stark_ naked….” He winked with a chuckle, smile soon turning soft. Slowly taking the sorcerer’s gloved hand, he curled his fingers around it and followed the man through amber ring.

"I suppose we'll see how things go, won't we?" Stephen's lips twitched a little in amusement before he rolled his eyes a little as he accompanied the other through the portal. "I'm fairly certain the only one of us qualified to be _stark naked_ is you." 

“That’s all I need, because I can certainly steer the ship in that direction if the sea is clear and the _stars are guiding my way._ ”

* * *

They both touched down and the first sight greeting them was a welcome center and then a plowed pathway. The trail lead on through a small village of glass-dome villas set in a line along the walkway. Offshoots to a parking lot and a small village of gift shops and different resort-themed attractions.   
  
“Let’s get ourselves checked in and then the night is ours!” Tony squeezed Stephen’s hand, tugging him in a bit closer in the cold as he lead them towards the welcome center.

Though at first Stephen had been content to cuddle against Tony's side as they walked, simply admiring their surroundings through the haze left by each exhalation, their approach to the welcome center seemed to leave him hesitant.

There didn't seem to be much of a fuss as he checked in, and the front desk attendant addressing Tony as if they were already acquainted handing him his bedroom key with a fond smile and nodding at Stephen as well, knowingly.

Tony collected the small paper slip, a little packet with two plastic keys, one which he immediately handed off to Stephen as he stayed tightly to the sorcerer’s side.  
  
Tony had booked them a normal pod, the furthest and most secluded pod on the resort. He approached the hotel room and keyed them both in. 

As they headed back out Stephen’s discomfort seemed to abate and tucked himself comfortably against Tony again, putting the second key away into one of the many folds of his overcoat. It was just after dusk now, the sky was dark enough to see stars here and there, but as they entered the glass building the sorcerer chuckled.  
  
A hotel room that was a glass dome in the shape of an igloo, moderately heated but still rather chilly once they were inside with a luxurious fur bedspread. There were no curtains on the dome but it was secluded enough that they wouldn’t have to worry about privacy being an issue.

"Ah, the sweet privacy of a glass house," Stephen mused teasingly, though he took the time to properly admire the small building from within. The snow had built up an interesting barrier just outside the glass, leaving the bed fairly concealed from the walkway. There was no view from the bed that didn't provide a stunning display of trees and stars. "... oh. This is really going to be gorgeous later on, isn't it?"  
  
They were certainly far enough north at the right time of year for the odds of seeing the Northern Lights to be in their favour, and with only low drawn back curtains to cover the large glass panes, it was going to be quite a display for certain. Not to mention that they were a good seven hours ahead of their own schedules, so the likelihood of them sleeping was minimal, but not impossible.

_But sleeping wasn't exactly the point._

“Hah, yeah, the glass really conceals it all.” Tony rolled his eyes at Stephen’s light sarcasm. “Well, I picked a night when there was going to be a large geomagnetic storm, so we’ll definitely get the chance to see something - but not for at least an hour yet...” Tony trailed off, setting what little belongings he brought with him on the floor beside them.

”In the meantime I’ve booked other activities for us...” He trailed off rather sheepishly. “If you need any time to freshen up, do your thing and I’ll wait outside. If not, we have 15 minutes roughly before the first event - and I’m not going to spoil it.” He stood at the entrance of the pod with a broad smile.

"Freshen up?" Stephen gave him a curious look at that. "Despite my eclectic appearance I assure you I freshened up plenty prior to picking you up to begin with. Or are you trying to suggest something?"

“Put your things down? I don’t know what your routine is when you go on vacation.” Tony shrugged with a lopsided grin as he adjusted the collar of his jacket. “And I’m not suggesting _anything_ , but if you are good, then let's go!” He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb towards the door of their little pod.

"I don't usually go on vacation," Stephen shrugged but looked a bit amused anyway as he followed the other out, pulling up his hood this time. "In fact, I'm fairly sure my last 'vacation' was before I turned twenty, so... I don't really have a routine for something like that."

Tony simply rolled his eyes.

“I’m not sure if you’re into animals…” He started softly, opening the door and stepping outside into the brisk cold. Tony was doing his very best to conceal his nerves, he was worried by Stephen’s response that he’d already messed something up with his suggestion. He needed to remain calm, it was just a date - it was like hanging out with your best friend…

Your best friend that you had _feelings for_.

"Actually, I love animals. I'm going to assume I have to wait to find out what _kind_ of animal…?"

Tony winked at Stephen, taking his hand and leading him towards their destination.  
  
Sleigh rides - but not just any sleigh rides, _reindeer_ sleigh rides!   
  
Tony stepped forward, he’d booked the entire evening. He stepped up to the animal handler who had two sleighs already equipped and two reindeer to lead them.

One of the reindeer was pale creamy-white, while the other was a dusty brown chocolate colour.

“I figured it would be nice to take a tour through the countryside before we watch the aurora borealis.” He finally let go of Stephen’s hand, leading him over to the albino reindeer-driven sled.

"Tony..." The name was said with surprise as Stephen took in the sleighs and the animals hitched to the front of them, looking mildly giddy. "Those are _reindeer_ !" He paused beside the sled for half a moment before looking to the handler with a hint of childish glee.   
  
"Can I pet them? Would that be okay?" When the man in question gave a short nod, Stephen's gloves were off in a half a second, stuffed into a pocket as he rather delightedly (though cautiously) approached the creature's muzzle with a quietly murmured greeting to the reindeer.

Resting a hand along the side of the reindeer's muzzle, Stephen offered a warm smile to Tony.

Tony simply stood back and observed the scene that played out before him. He didn’t know much about Stephen and hadn’t anticipated he would be so absorbed in the creature comforts of the resort but with an educated guess it was still lucky.

The reindeer sleigh ride was a hit and he just admired the interactions, heart full as he silently stood by, observing his date’s enthusiasm.  
  
“Pick whichever one you want, I’ll take the one you don't. We have these lovely boys rented out as long as you like.” Tony postured, basking in the pride of having an idea that Stephen was enjoying himself. He wanted the magus to have fun on this date, with the ride and the animals as much as possible.

"You can't ask me to pick..." Stephen murmured as he continued to pet the reindeer's muzzle gently, not seeming to mind the beast's less than stellar breath as he contemplated Tony's words for a few moments, before quietly whispering something to the white creature. The reindeer chuffed quietly, gently stomping a foot in the snow before Stephen slipped away to approach the chestnut reindeer with a pleased smile and a quiet greeting. He received a rather large, wet tongue over his hand as he extended to pet the creature, leaving him to laugh and nod a little.

"If you want the white one, I think this guy likes me better," The sorcerer declared with a quiet, contented smile, even as the chestnut's muzzle nudged against his shoulder and cheek in curious greeting. Stephen didn't even seem put off by the rather sweet creature nibbling at the coat covering his arm.

The beast shoved it’s snoot into Stephen’s hands, demanding attention and Tony chuckled softly to himself. This was adorable and despite Stephen’s chastising on picking beasts, he smiled and took the pale reindeer considering the fact that the sorcerer had already connected with the earth-tone caribou.

Tony stole another quick kiss from Stephen, he gave the sorcerer’s hand a gentle squeeze before settling himself on the sleigh.  
  
“Well doc, if you’re ready then let’s go! The wilderness awaits us!” He taunted softly, waiting on Stephen as the beast-master idled.

* * *

They called the sleigh ride nearly an hour in as they started to see colours blooming across the firmament. It would still be another half hour straight back, but by the time they returned it had been determined that sleighs - while wonderful, were not necessarily the best place to try and converse with a date.

Tony wouldn't admit that maybe his outerwear was less practical and more for looks, still keeping him warm but regardless - sitting still in this cold wouldn’t do anyone good no matter how bundled up you were. So maybe part of their return was because _someone_ had decided to go form over function with their arctic-wear, with slim-fitting clothes to _impress a certain someone._   
  
As they returned to the main resort grounds and left their individual sleighs, Stephen trailed after the reindeer and rested his arms on the posts of the paddock. The pair of reindeer seemed content enough to stay near the fence and accept his affections.

Tony had been admiring Stephen’s tender grace and charm with the animals. Although he wasn’t much for big fuzzy snow-beasts and petting cute little animals. It still warmed his heart to watch the sweet and careful interactions between the man of his affections and these animals.

"Thank you," The sorcerer murmured quietly to the pair once the handler had disappeared from sight.  
  
"You're welcome!" Chimed a pair of rather cheerful reindeer, leaving the sorcerer to smile all the more widely and turned a thoroughly enamoured smile on Tony.   
  
As Stephen spoke to the beasts he had to double-take, _making sure he wasn’t simply spacing out into la-la-land as the animal piped up._   
  
He was so confused, distinctly stressed out at the moment!   
  
"And thank _you_." Stephen added, his eyes focused on Tony, though Tony’s gaze was perplexedly fixed on the reindeer.

“Uh hey Steph, am I going crazy or did that thing just talk?” He squinted his eyes, pinched himself - he was definitely awake right now.

Watching the other's bewilderment for a few moments, Stephen smiled and shuffled through the snow to offer a gloved hand to Tony.

"I'm not the kind of doctor to diagnose how _sane_ you are, Tony." He offered a playful smile. "But the reindeer did indeed just talk. I didn't mean to alarm you... it was just a short spell." 

Tony registered what Stephen said and then slowly took up the offered hand. He nodded, a little on the confused side still but he’d roll with it.  
  
Of all the masterful-mystical abilities the Sorcerer Supreme had domain over, apparently making animals talk was the hardest one for Tony to grasp at the moment. Never mind diffusing black holes, splitting into a hundred different clones of himself and creating portals that literally made no scientific sense in concept to how they worked.   
  
_… but talking animals?_   
  
Tony’s thin gloved fingers curled around Stephen’s stuffy mitt and he took the opportunity to press in close, bumping an arm up against his affectionately.   
  
“Just a little startled, I probably should expect the unexpected around you. I already know I’m crazy, last thing I need is for other people to realize that.” He led them on through the small conclave of chalets littered in even rows down the plowed snowy trail.

“What do you say we grab something hot to drink and go find ourselves a nice little spot to check out the storm?” The brunette was already leading his companion over to one of the open-windowed stores regardless of Stephen’s answer.

"After everything you've been through, I admit I _am_ surprised that the talking animals startled you but... I'm sorry," Stephen murmured softly, "I admit I just didn't think about it beyond wanting to talk to the reindeer. So perhaps expecting the unexpected _is_ advisable, but I'll attempt to be more conscientious with my use of magic in mundane environments."

“The magic really only caught me off guard, don’t worry.” Tony winked with a soft lopsided smile, doing his best impersonation of an innocent puppy for Stephen. As they walked the sorcerer nodded and curled his hand a little more around Tony's - as much as he could given the thickness of his own gloves and the limitations of his hands.

"Hot chocolate kind of warm drink, or mulled wine kind of warm drink?" He inquired thoughtfully. "Or are you thinking along the lines of tea and coffee while my brain decides we're being festive? Because there might be tea or coffee in the pod at least. And it does seem like the place to watch the lights - that's the point of the big glass dome, isn't it? Or did you have something else in mind?"

“I was thinking an apple cider. They have this great drink here, homemade apple cider heated with a shot of caramel - gives me the heartburn something fierce but it’s so worth it. I’m sure you could easily get some tea or coffee there regardless, it’s almost a basic necessity.” He stopped them in front of the stall.

“I may have wanted to do it outside for an excuse to leech off of your warmth but I figured you’d make an exception for me even if we were indoors…” Tony walked up to the open window and ordered for himself, waiting for Stephen to place his order.

"My warmth is pretty well insulated under several layers. You might find it challenging to leech off my body heat outdoors. With that said, if you're cold we should get you somewhere warmer and ideally avoid you catching a cold as much as possible." Despite his words, Stephen moved to walk closer to the engineer as though he might somehow radiate sufficient warmth for Tony. "There is a reason that body-to-body warming usually _doesn't involve so much clothing."_ _  
_ _  
_Mulled wine was a thought that apparently sat well enough with the sorcerer that he pulled his gloves off to curl his hands around the warm cup, holding it beneath his nose and mouth to let the steam from the cup wash over his face.

"We can cuddle up on the cloak? Keep the snow from melting and seeping into clothes, but still stay outdoors until you're ready to get a bit more warmed up?"

Tony sunk into Stephen’s side like he was a fledgling leaning into its parental emperor penguin. The idea of going inside and sipping on their hot drinks appealed so much more to him than staying outside since he’d already caught a chill from not moving during their sleigh ride.  
  
“Oh my, doc! Are you trying to suggest something?” He had a wide grin spread across his face at the mention of body-to-body heat. “I’m only assuming that this method of warming up would probably be the most effective with _no_ clothing at all...” He couldn’t help but tease - leave it to Tony’s head to go right to the gutter when Stephen was trying to be serious about it.

"But cuddling under the cloak and blankets to watch the stars and lights sounds... lovely. I’ve already caught a chill, plus I’d enjoy just cozying up to you under a blanket and watching the stars. No offense to your cloak, but it’s _really damn cold outside._ ” He blew a playful puff of air into Stephen’s face.

"I don't think you're suffering from hypothermia, are you?" Stephen cast the other a small, amused smirk at his words. "If you are, I'm sure they have a proper medical set up here to deal with it that would probably still involve stripping _you_ out of your clothes at the very least and into something warmer and drier. Better yet, warm and directly out of the dryer. We're far from one of those emergency situations where you'd need to be sandwiched between two mostly naked bodies under a pile of blankets. But I'm not going to stop you from thinking about it if the idea appeals to you."

Tony was somehow getting slightly turned on by the ideas in the scenario that Stephen was describing, especially considering he was so sly about it all with his very medical explanation. He couldn’t help but imagine the idea of having the sorcerer’s nude form pressed up against his cold body under a crisp warm blanket.  
  
_And not even for heat…_   
  
Sipping at the mulled wine, Stephen offered the man a smile and a light shrug.

Tony paid for their drinks and grabbed his. He directed Stephen back to their little personal glass hovel, itching to sit down and simply spend some time with Stephen where work wasn’t an impeding factor nor freezing his ass off in the middle of below-freezing temperatures.

“How about this - we can cozy up underneath your cloak _inside_ preferably.”

Wandering through the snow to their dome, it seemed to slowly start changing colours around them. Green, purple and blue beginning to highlight trees, and for a moment Stephen paused just outside the igloo to look up at the play of lights across the sky.  
  
“I know I'm shorter than you, but I’ll let you be the little spoon - how’s that to get you excited, eh?” Tony winked. He settled in close to Stephen’s side.   
  
He had to admit, it was a lot more beautiful than than he’d remembered. Not often did Tony take _time_ for himself to just enjoy life away from the compound. He had to give it to Stephen for also playing along with his awful jokes. The man was able to dish right back what was served in full.   
  
“I’ll even help you get out of that excessive amount of layers.” That second part was spoken much more softly with playful purr under his breath - but to a degree it was meant to be an innocent jest.

Stephen observed Tony for a brief moment and opened the door to their room - and really, it was basically a room. There was a small kitchenette and a private toilet, but the dome was predominantly a bedroom, with saunas and showers available elsewhere on the resort grounds.  
  
"Oh, little spoon is it?" He inquired as he slipped through the doorway, watching as colours played over the snow, glass and sky in an ethereal display. " _And_ you plan to undress me? Honestly, Tony, I've only got _one_ cup of mulled wine. I think you're mistaking me for a different kind of man," He quipped in turn, setting the wine in question on one of the tiny counters in the kitchenette before beginning to peel off a couple of his outer layers.

“Hey! I was just offering you some help with that! I mean, you could help me out of my clothes any day.” He chuckled softly and began to peel his own layers away before Stephen could put another thought into his teasing.

He wanted to make a show of it but at the same time he would prefer not to potentially mess up their first date considering it had taken so long to actually get to this point.

"You seem to have that handled all on your own." The sorcerer commented as he stripped himself down to a loose navy turtleneck of his own with a pair of darker jeans. The cloak emerged from amidst the many layers of clothing to curl around Stephen as though to protect him from the cold. Tony couldn’t help but enjoy watching Stephen strip out of those heavy layers revealing his his slender form beneath.

Tony really didn’t have that many layers himself, he’d shed the heavier part of the outerwear until he was in nothing but the jet-black under armour that kept his body from chafing in the thicker layers. A stylish skin-tight turtleneck, long sleeves with slick patterning stitched into the spandex type fabric, similar to the skintight leggings he wore with their grey and indigo embellishments.  
  
“For the record, it doesn’t take me alcohol to start getting handsy. But then again what kind of gentlemen would I be if I did?” Tony teased, sliding onto the bed and leaning back to look up at the stars and light show above them.

His attempts to be suave were almost undone by his giddy thoughts, butterflies chaotically fluttering around his gut as he took in the moment.

Stephen snagged the warm mulled wine and slipped over to the bed, watching Tony quietly before setting the wine somewhere nearby and safe. Pulling his legs up onto the bed to sit cross-legged, his hands curled once more around the warm mug as he looked up at the display of lights.  
  
" _You?_  A gentleman?" Stephen retaliated in amusement before glancing at the engineer with a warm smile and a sip of wine. "... mm, who would've thought?"

Tony shuffled himself up along the headboard of the bed, it would probably be a better idea to sit up straight considering the both of them had some neglected hot beverages to nurse during the brilliant display. He held his disposable cup in hand, while the other stretched out to welcome Stephen into the fold of his arm.   
  
“C’mere, I do believe I’m deserving of some cuddles at the very least for being an excellent textbook date! Maybe if I’m good you’ll let me steal a kiss from you? Though, it’s not technically stealing I guess if you’ve already given me permission…”

Watching the outstretched arm Stephen offered a small smile before shuffling over to at least lean against Tony. He adjusted his legs to allow his thigh to press against Tony's for his nearness and sipped once more at the wine before setting it safely aside.  
  
"Well, you might fit right in for some combination of a textbook date. Though I suppose there are plenty of people who book hotels for their first dates and you've kind of made that list." Stephen teased playfully. "And maybe if you just ask nice you'll get one anyway. You don't need to be 'good' for that, you really just need to be _you_."

As Stephen had taken up the invitation Tony scooted up a little further so that the sorcerer’s head was be resting closer to the crook of his arm. Having him lower down made it less awkward and straining on his arm as he enjoyed the moment together.

"So what made you think of this place? Is this just... somewhere you like to go? Or _is_ this your typical go-to place for a first date, hm?"   
  
“To be fair - yes maybe I booked a hotel like _those plenty of other people_... But how many travel across the globe and book a hotel just to watch the northern lights? Eh? Give me some credit here!” He huffed, mostly joking. His stomach flipped a bit as he concentrated on the other man’s warm body pressed up against him.

"The sweet, romantic ones do, I suppose." Stephen smiled further as he tilted his head a little to rest it against Tony's shoulder, allowing the cloak to bundle itself around them and arrange itself for its own comfort. Tony lifted an arm when the cloak had re-positioned itself to spread itself across both of their laps, taking a sip from his cup before letting his arm drop down to rest on the crimson fabric.

He was comfortable enough to look up to the sky and watch the display, warm enough with Stephen’s body huddled up against his front, and close enough to pick up the scents of sandalwood and frankincense that lingered on the other.  
  
“Well, it was my _attempt_ at trying to share a little bit of magic with you. Magic I’m more familiar with - a scientific sort of magic...” He trailed off, his confidence faltering as he started to stumble over his explanation. “You could take that answer, but at the same time I’d be lying if I didn't try to take you somewhere unconventional - interesting.”

"I've never seen the aurora borealis in person before, and it really is beautiful. It was very thoughtful of you despite my teasing." Stephen admitted quietly as he watched the way the lights danced across the sky, lighting up the wilderness around them _._   
  
"And I _did_ request interesting, so you've definitely hit the mark there. But it also sounded like you'd been here before. I suppose it was the lights that made it stand out?" He inquired, his smile remaining fixed even as he reached for his wine again.

Tony swelled a bit with the compliment, the arm he had around Stephen’s shoulders gently squeezed and he was adventurous enough to lean his cheek down against the side of Stephen’s head and brush it with a brief nuzzle.  
  
“Not here, but I used to take an interest in chasing geomagnetic storms - and with your capabilities of travel, I figured it would be a good opportunity since they are quite frequent up here at this time of year… I just also did a bunch of research about the place before I picked it out...” He spoke softly, staring up at the prismatic colours that streaked in waves across the night sky.   
  
_It was almost hypnotic._

"Tony Stark: Storm Chaser," Stephen chuckled a little at that, righting his head with a mirthful expression. "Somehow that sounds very _you_... I like it. It's not as catchy as ‘Iron Man’ though." He added after a moment, his eyes on the sky as he made it clear that he had no intentions of lingering on hero duty.

“Did you want to try a sip of this? _It’s pretty damn good._ ” He nudged his cup over to Stephen.

Watching lines of red worm their way in amidst the vibrant green that illuminated the trees. It took Stephen a few moments to redirect his attentions to Tony again. He blinked at the offered cup for a moment curiously before offering his own with a little smile.

"Trade?"

Tony’s hand had been languidly brushing over Stephen’s collar in a slow repetitive caress. He had just been caught up in the sorcerer’s gentle gravelly voice, eyes to the heavens as those words floated in through his ears like a natural ambiance.   
  
He quirked a brow and shook his head at the offered beverage.   
  
“I’d love to doc, but I’ve been trying to be more moderating about alcohol. In fact, I’ve been abstaining entirely for the last several months. I’m sure I’m really missing out though.” He settled for tipping his cup and bumping the side up against Stephen’s in a toast to the man instead. “I’ll just have to enjoy it vicariously through you.”

"Oh?" The sorcerer looked a little surprised at first before smiling at the toast. "Well, I'm still happy to try some cider, but let's just see what we can do here..."  
  
Stephen had joked about them having a limited amount of their drinks earlier, but with quiet focus he rested his free hand above each cup and in moments they were full and warm again.

Setting aside his mulled wine after another sip, Stephen slowly sunk against Tony's side again, resting his head on the man's shoulder with a small smile.

"At least now if I have some of your cider I won't be denying you any. We both could use the warmth, hm?"

Tony felt the cup in his hand heat up and smiled, he slowly held the beverage up to Stephen’s lips offering him a sip. His arm curled to loosely rest around the sorcerer’s neck, and this time he made an attempt to sneak a quick kiss, pecking at Stephen’s temple - a short, innocent little thing.  
  
“So animals… I didn’t take you for an animal lover, I guess we killed two birds with one stone on this one, huh?” Tony was genuinely curious as he prodded, interested to know more about what Stephen was passionate about aside from magic.   
  
“I mean if I had known that you were so fond of animals I would have picked something with a lot more creature comforts for you… You know, or I could have also put on a collar if that’s your thing…”  He emphasized his flirting with a subtle squeeze.

Even the small, affectionate kiss seemed enough to reinforce Stephen's own smile as he sampled the offered cider, giving a soft hum of approval at that. It took him a few moments before he looked to Tony.

"As a child I preferred the company of animals to most people and living on a farm there were a lot of animals to choose from. Animals just... appreciate you, unconditionally. They don't care about your circumstances." His hands curled around his mug more firmly, adjusting his hold on it and settling his gaze on the display of lights again. "But this is perfect. It's beautiful here, I've never seen reindeer in person before and they were a lot cuter than I expected."  
  
Setting his mug aside once more, Stephen slipped himself out from under Tony's arm, turning to face the man with a curious look. "If you _want_ to wear a collar, I'm sure that's something I wouldn't object to in the slightest."

At the mention of a collar Tony’s face flushed red. The poor man was mostly all for show, it wasn't as if anyone ever took him up on his advances, and one (1) Stephen Strange was more than willing to indulge his more flirtatious side, let alone his fantasies on the matter.  
  
In all honesty Tony wanted to ask the other to summon up some magic collar, given that wouldn’t be too out of his magical capabilities. On the other hand… Wasn’t this just the first date? It was torture, but in the name of being the _perfect_ gentlemen, Tony could only jaunt with the man’s flirting.   
  
“To be perfectly candid, I hope you know I would love nothing more than having you collar me like the untamed animal I am…” Tony’s eyes were flicking between Stephen's as he hovered so dangerously close to him. “But for first-date’s sake - and I know I’m going to regret this later... but as I said before - I _will_ be the perfect gentlemen for you…” He swallowed the forming lump in his throat and set his cup to the bedside stand before looping his arms around Stephen’s midsection and pulling him down against him.

Adjusting his legs to lay himself over Tony, the sorcerer's smile twisted into a little smirk as he chuckled softly to himself, his voice low when he spoke.

"If being a 'perfect gentleman' isn't what comes naturally to you... then _yes_. You're going to regret this later." Brushing the tip of his nose against Tony's for a moment, Stephen focused a deeply considering look on the brunette, resting his weight on his elbows.

"You slipped us away to a corner of the world we're unlikely to be found in, got us a quiet place to set the mood, a room, _a_ bed..." He began listing lowly, draping his body over Tony's rather pointedly.

"You've teased stripping me, undressed to the state that... honestly you look incredible - I haven't mentioned that have I? But you do... Now you're giving me permission to collar you, but insisting you're going to be a _perfect_ gentleman..."   
  
Tony felt Stephen’s knee brush up against a _very sensitive part of his body_ \- and good god did he wish the sorcerer hadn’t done that because he found himself growing hard at the contact. He was so happy, so perfectly fine staying aroused at the idea - but now that physical contact had come into play, he was surely doomed…   
  
The brunette’s face was inflamed, crimson spreading across his cheeks as his hands remained stationary on the sorcerer’s hips. His voice? Like melting wax over his body. The sound was so impactful that he could only shrink and sink into the comforter below him.   
  
Tony swallowed _, hard._   
  
Truth be told, he really was fighting, _desperately so_ with temptation. He felt it so important that they hold off, that they abstain just like his drinking habits so that some bond _other than sex_ be formed between them.   
  
_Why?_   
  
Because Stephen meant the world to him in all true honesty. But that didn’t change facts: he wanted to bend that beautiful man over and rail him until he howled the engineer’s name like an animal.   
  
“Well… You know, I wanted this to be a _proper_ date.” The shakiness of the engineer’s voice betrayed him. “All good things come with patience and I don’t want to ruin this, I seriously don’t…” And _that_ was an honest truth.   
  
"Nor to give you the impression it was anything close to a _one-night stand._ "

Stephen gave a thoughtful hum at his words, fingers lifting to play with Tony's hair as he observed the varied shades of red Tony's face displayed even with the array of pink and orange lights that kept changing the ambient colour of their cozy little hide-away. He spent a few moments in silence contemplating Tony's face before sighing softly and pressing a chaste kiss to the tip of the man's nose, pushing himself up again into a seated position.  
  
Gathering his mug, Stephen rested his back against the headboard once more to observe the skies outside their dome, sipping at the wine as if nothing had happened.

"Alright. Behaving ourselves then." With another small sip of his drink, he set the mug down again and returned to their previous subject as though Tony had never mentioned being collared to begin with.  
  
"Are you much of a fan of animals? Grow up with pets or anything like that?"

Tony let out a frustrated sigh, semi-hard as he rolled over - arm crossing over Stephen’s chest as he buried his face into the magus’ side. He pressed his forehead into Stephen’s neck and nodded his head there as if shielding himself from his own physical disposition.

_This was his choice,_ that made it _his fault_ in the end _._  
  
“Me? Animals? I can't say I really had an affinity outside my childhood towards them. I may have had a few stray cats that I fed around the house when I was younger, but my family wasn’t exactly a pet-friendly household.” Came the muffled response as he continued to hide himself against Stephen.  
  
He’d curled up, trying to hide any sort of tell that he was undeniably aroused from the previous situation as if it was something to be ashamed about. Stephen lifted an arm to wrap it around Tony, resuming playing with his hair.

"That's a shame. No pets, no siblings... how did you keep yourself entertained as a child? I would've been bored out of my mind." Stephen admitted, though he kept his eyes focused on the skies for the time being.

Tony felt his muscles relax with the arm gently resting over his shoulders. He couldn’t help but keep his knees curled to put some distance between certain parts of his body and Stephen’s.  
  
“Well I built things, invented. I had a knack for mechanics and creating things. Thankfully my father had the money to fund my creative endeavors - things just kind of clicked for me and I could get lost, waste away days in the workshop just building cars, motors until I started to delve into my own creations and innovating.” Tony began, a calm to his voice.   
  
“You know sometimes I got so caught up in my work, I couldn't imagine having a pet because most of the time I hardly remembered to feed and take care of myself.” He jested softly. “I was your stereotypical nerd.”

"Ahhh yes, gadgets and gizmos aplenty. I can imagine how that would be distracting, and terribly unhealthy... I hope you haven't been perpetuating those particular habits." Stephen chuckled, nuzzling the top of Tony's head.

"But don't go being all humble now, Tony. MIT at 15 is far cry from stereotypical and I think we _all_ know it. Two masters degrees by 19...? Sounds like a lot for _anyone_ to accomplish so young, _Doctor Stark_."

“I _was_ trying to keep the bragging to a minimum - but does it count when you do it for me?” He responded, feeling the weight of Stephen’s cheek against his head and chortling to himself. “You seem to have everything about me figured out, I feel like it’s a little unfair considering my entire lifestyle was always shadowed by the media from a young age.”

"Hm, I don't think it counts. But I also don't believe everything the media has to say about your growing up. I can only imagine there were assumptions made, exaggerations or omissions. The way the media tells your story is not the way I imagine _you_ would necessarily tell your story. There are facts - education, taking over the company after your parents' accident, your kidnapping... but those are facts and I'm not sure how much to trust the details. You're the only one who really knows those kinds of things."

“At this point, if the rumors and the media haven’t frightened you off, then there’s really not much more I need to mention, unless you are genuinely curious?”  
  
"Of course I'm genuinely curious. Rumours and media are just that - rumours and media. I think we all know that both of those things can be faulty. Naturally, so can memory, but the way you _felt_ about situations and occurrences that happened are things that no one can really report on but you." 

“Well I mean most of that stuff is all true up until the part about my parents… It wasn’t exactly an accident, and there’s a lot about my kidnapping that, well…” Tony’s head turned a little to the side, it seemed like he was just as sensitive about his subject as Stephen was about his own, in that moment wanting to shrink away.

Tony’s breathing had started to go ragged in the spirit of not wanting to embarrass himself in front of Stephen, he’d grown increasingly nervous. He almost panicked with the recollections of past events flashing through his mind as his eyes glazed over.

He went placid in Stephen’s arms and stared blankly into his chest where he was securely cradled.

Stephen glanced down at the man, adjusting a little in his spot to wrap his other arm around Tony so he could hold him closer.   
  
How would he be able to tell Stephen that a member of their Avengers was one of the men who killed his parents? That another kept it a secret? That his business partner, up until he took control of his company left him for dead - in fact ordered his death.   
  
The world had been _cruel to him._ And while he did feel some safety and certainty in Stephen’s arms, he didn’t know if he would be able to quite define the incidents without potentially ruining the atmosphere of their date.   
  
These were hangups, emotional baggage he wasn’t ready to open up about after the _long flight_. Eventually down the road he would, but perhaps not tonight.

Tony had done a lot of extensive research on Stephen, dredging up things that were not actually _common_ knowledge to the public just due to the substantial information he had access to at his fingertips - Stephen was the most qualified next applicant to the Avengers team as far as Tony was concerned - however that wouldn’t stop him from still asking questions. There were still parts of Stephen’s life he didn’t know much about, most of it being a mystery after he’d dropped off the radar and turned to mastering the mystic arts.   
  
“How old are you anyway? Random, but I was always curious…” He curled up further against Stephen, eyes staring into the sorcerer’s neck that was currently eye-level with his face. He knew the question was dumb and mundane, but he’d use that to segway into other topics of discussion.   
  
The softness and affection became a still silence in a heartbeat as Stephen contemplated Tony's inquiry. A dour laugh left him after a few moments of thought.

"You're asking the keeper of the Time Stone how old he is... you have to know that's a complicated question to answer." The sorcerer replied quietly. There was a certain tenseness in his throat that seeped through into his words.

Tony hadn’t expected the air to grow so thick with a simple question pertaining to age. He felt Stephen’s body tense against him, the bobbing of his throat and almost withheld breath as there was a quiet before the answer - although ambiguous - was expressed to him.  
  
“Well… Yes?” Was the sheepish and confused response that came from the brunette pressed up against him. “You know, my parents never wanted me dating anyone that was _too out of my age bracket._ ” That was a lie, but for lack of a better attempt Tony was just trying to be funny and keep the situation between them upbeat.   
  
“Complicated or not, I’m still curious. I would like to know more about you, isn’t that what the whole premise of a date is?” He soothed quietly, attempting to sort out the other’s ruffled feathers with gentle hands stroking his back.

"Counting years from when I was born? I'm 38 until November. That's about the only logical answer I can give you." Still there was a certain solemnity to the way Stephen responded, leaning his head back against the headboard and staring at the sky with a long, quiet sigh. He didn't seem to respond to Tony's jest more than to hold the man a little closer as he sighed.   
  
"If you have other questions, I'll do my best to answer them more comprehensively." His free hand picked up the wine once more and the doctor took a couple of quick gulps before setting the mug aside again and closing his eyes to take a few deep breaths, trying to calm his racing heart and mind.   
  
“You know, I didn’t think I had about _10 years on you_ , but what do you mean by ‘counting the years’? The way you started to answer made me think there’s something up about your age, something you aren’t telling me? Usually you get a straightforward answer for a question like that.” Tony didn’t quite comprehend the weight of the question and how it held just as much equilibrium as Stephen’s.

He nestled his nose into Tony's hair, closing his eyes again.

"Since _you're_ being so nosy... consider Titan. To you it was minutes that I was viewing our options. But you can't view the amount of time I viewed in just a few minutes, can you? Not with detail. Not with clarity. Blinking through outcomes doesn't get you anywhere, it's a snapshot that doesn't explain any of the hows or whys. I viewed months and years at a time sometimes. I watched people live, people die, people _suffering_ ... I may not have been there, but it felt just as real as anything else I've ever experienced."   
  
Stephen's hold tightened further for a brief moment before he loosened his arms.

"How much time did I spend mentally venturing through time? It's hard to say. And if someone had a groundhog day-esque loop, then what? How old would someone be after living the same day hundreds or thousands of times...? That's what I mean by counting the years. All of my identification will say that I'm 38. Maybe I am."

For all the posturing and hard exterior that Tony had - a titan slayer, an Avenger, a leader of all sorts - he was still but a man, a mortal. Every person in their life no matter how strong they were would feel vulnerable, and thus every single one could appreciate the feeling of safety and protection.  
  
_He felt safe here, he felt protected._   
  
“I won’t push further, thanks Stephen. I promise I’ll share some of the family stuff and whatnot with you at some point and likewise I’d like to know more about what happened in the past with you... But I don’t want to ruin the mood of the evening. I’ve been enjoying myself, and I don't want that to stop - especially for you.”

Stephen shifted enough to rest his cheek on Tony's head instead, staring out the window into the trees and snow, watching the colours in the night sky in silence.   
  
"We all have our secrets, Tony," Stephen began. "You don't owe me any answers. I won't pry your secrets out of you. I don't want to know anything you're not _willing_ to tell me yourself. I don't want to be told out of a sense of obligation either." After a moment more, Stephen withdrew back into a more seated position against the headboard, the arm that had been draped over Tony moving as though he might pick up the mug again, before he simply sighed and rested his hand in his lap again instead.

The warm, comforting body against him had shifted - moved.   
  
_Good job Tony, you did it again._   
  
With Stephen removing his arm from him the nagging anxiety returned and he shrunk back away from Stephen. He felt his chest constrict but he stayed balled up with his head against the pillow, eyes downcast and half lidded as if he’d just been shamed for something.   
  
He’d made the mistake of taking things too deep, dredging up the past and unwanted memories which were completely inappropriate details as far as dates went. His logical mind knew this was just a hiccup, a small mistake but with every negative thought compiling, his mind was starting to snowball.   
  
He caught himself, dug his heels in and took a deep breath, his body rising and he unfurled himself from his almost fetal-like position and when he felt his voice was calmed enough - he spoke again.   
  
“Right… Yeah. Thanks, and I’m sorry for bringing this up.” His voice was meek, but he faced his fears, sat up and nodded his head towards Stephen, propping himself up against the backboard and putting a little space between their bodies as he tilted his head skyward to distract himself with the lights above.

Stephen took a slow sip of his wine, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to inhale the pleasantly spiced scent of it, then slowly rested them back into his lap, as the cloak curled gently around his waist in some subtle approximation of a hug.

"And I'm sorry for bringing up Titan. I realize the age thing shouldn't be such an issue, it just made me realize I wasn't sure how to answer that question. It meant having to consider _why_ it felt so hard to answer."

Tony’s mind raced for things to say, he wasn’t sure whether to conclude their evening here and now. Things had deteriorated. His fears about ruining their moods made manifest through sensitive topics being brought to light.  
  
It wasn’t anyone’s fault and he had to accept that. Things seemed so uncertain at the moment, his future, his fears, whom he could trust. But one thing that was definite was even with all of this -  he still felt safe.   
  
Stephen made him feel _safe_ .   
  
He could surely pick himself up after a small discussion like that, couldn’t he? There was no rejection, just the sense that both were not comfortable and far be it for Stephen to be the type to throw him to the curb over something like this.   
  
Tony tried once again, reaching idly for Stephen’s closest hand. He searched it out in the sorcerer’s lap and courageously placed his palm over the other man’s knuckles, rubbing them gently to ease the stifling air in the room.   
  
The contact honestly made him feel better at least.   
  
“Hey, don’t worry - I won’t bring it up again. We both have our crosses to bear, let's leave it at that.” His voice was gentle, reassuring and understanding.

Feeling the hand rest on his own, Stephen's eyes shifted slowly from the mug he held to Tony’s hand before he allowed his own hand to adjust, threading his fingers between Tony's to hold it.   
  
"So, if we avoid talking about family tragedy and we avoid talking about potential world ending events do you figure we can still have a nice getting-to-know-each-other type conversation?" He inquired softly. "I'm still open to answering other questions you might have. We'll just make sure we're both clear if it's a subject we aren't ready to talk about yet?"   
  
Learning to communicate was just one of the bumps on the road of a relationship, he supposed. He'd never been particularly good at it when he'd dated before but even the first day he'd met Stephen, despite their banter they'd been able to talk like sensible, civil individuals who respected one another's opinion. That was one of the few things he remembered fondly from that day when he looked back on it and it was certainly one of the things that gave him hope for their relationship now, despite their many and varied issues.   
  
Lifting their interwoven hands the sorcerer pressed a soft kiss to the back of Tony's hand, before offering him a small smile.

“These aren’t things we can run from forever; I’m open to talking about my own issues when time permits - and believe me I want to. I want to be able to share my past, both the good and the bad. I have this awful knack for keeping things bottled up… It’s never done me any good.” Tony squeezed softly, finally letting his head fall to the side so he could look Stephen in the eyes.  
  
“But yeah - for now, let’s leave out the family tragedy and focus on the good stuff.” He inched himself closer to Stephen once again, closing the gap between them so their shoulders were touching softly. 

"Those kinds of conversations are likely best saved for when we're not in a little one-room igloo in the middle of Lapland. Probably better suited to something at home where if things are uncomfortable there are safe spaces to wander away into until whomever feels calm again," Stephen said, nodding his agreement even as he watched the man's warm chocolate eyes.  
  
“One thing I was always curious about - why you were so interested in me of all people and when you would have developed said interest, doc. You definitely had me surprised, up until then I thought it was just my _little secret_ , not something mutual.” He chuckled, thumbing at the side of Stephen’s hand.

The dome was growing darker, the lights in the sky slowly beginning to subside as he watched Tony, his expression softening before a slight blush crept into his face and he pursed his lips, looking away and looking inexplicably shy feeling at the question.  
  
"Ah. _That_ ... well." Taking a deep breath and a sip of his drink, Stephen watched his mug as he spoke again, looking thoughtful. "It's been a while. I think I had a crush on you a long time ago. You know, stupid... celebrity crushes... just... geez this sounds dumb as shit when I say it out loud..." Stephen paused a moment and chuckled awkwardly.   
  
"I was in New York during the invasion, working at Metro General Hospital. I heard the news, everyone was tuned in even as we were dealing with an influx of patients. I heard about you and the advent of the Avengers and I saw things - things you did, things you said, things that felt familiar. Things that made me believe in you to begin with. But I wasn't an _idiot_ . It wasn't like... I ever expected or thought anything was going to happen. I didn't expect to ever be blip on your radar. It was one of those sort of superficial things in many ways anyway; you were beyond celebrity status, you were a _hero_ . No amount of reading was going to give me any actual insight into who you were, so it's probably fair to say that I had a crush on the _idea_ of you." He took a brief sip from his mug as he gathered his thoughts again, before continuing.

"I forgot about it for a long time. Life happens, you know? Careers, relationships, those kinds of things kept me from thinking about anything like that. I changed in that time as much as anyone. And I'd certainly changed enough that when we actually did meet I didn't feel the same way I had before. I _respected_ you as someone with experience in the field and I was as annoyed as anything about the realization that your experience gave you a great deal of seniority in everything that came after. But as much as I hated - _still_ kind of hate - deferring to people... I didn't hate the opportunity to learn from someone with your level of experience. And as much as I disliked people getting in my space or touching me without thinking about it I _didn't_ hate the support you gave, I didn't hate feeling like you were someone I could rely on.   
  
"I saw things again. Things you _might_ do. Things you _might_ say. Things that I never thought I'd see or hear from anyone - some of which never happened, some of which did - and it was different. You weren't just an _idea_ or a _hero_ anymore, you were a _person_ . We were all just _people_ ... even after everything happened, you made sure things were okay. You checked in. You proved that you valued people. Maybe I let that go to my head a little, I don't know... it was just slow."   
  
After a moment of quiet, Stephen offered a wry smile to Tony. "Though it's probably fair to say I would have jumped into bed with you at the slightest hint that it would've been welcomed. You're _kind of_ gorgeous, you know."

Tony was more than baffled by the extensive explanation that came from Stephen. Again he was expecting something simple, something small but there seemed to be much more fantasy and history to Stephen’s side of the story - so much more depth than he ever would have imagined.  
  
He had grown close to Stephen in their time, colleagues, peers, good friends - someone he could rely on, stake his life on, he wouldn’t for a heartbeat ever doubt that in the most dire situations Stephen would come through for him 110%.   
  
The bewilderment at the explanation turned sheepish and Tony squeezed Stephen's hand before lifting it to his lips and planting a simple, chaste kiss atop his knuckles. He loved how that hand trembled within his grasp, it was so uniquely a trait of the man he cared deeply for. It was something that reminded him they were _all_ human despite what masterful powers and abilities Stephen held domain over - _it humanized him._   
  
No one Avenger was some immortal, inhuman god.   
  
Tony continued to hold Stephen’s hand between his palms like some delicate creature. Searching Stephen’s eyes as their hues shifted under the fading prismatic array in the sky.

“You know, most people blamed me for the city’s destruction.” He started, he had to let his eyes drop down with some semblance of shame. “And I wouldn’t blame them for that, there’s only so much we can do. Once the dust settles people always look to place their frustrations on a tangible source. And it’s fine, as long as it eases their conscience.” Tony played with the hand within his clutches, threading and unthreading his fingers softly through Stephen’s.  
  
“But if that’s the price I have to pay for keeping all that I hold near and dear safe, I wouldn't take any of it back. Ever.”   
  
Tony held that gentle smile as he looked up to Stephen, every time their eyes locked his stomach rolled in anxiousness, butterflies scattered from their perch in his stomach and he felt like a giddy schoolgirl.   
  
“Stephen your wit and the fact that you stood up to me was charming as hell. I may not have had as much time to really invest in my feelings during the crisis but it seriously made me second guess myself through the entire event. Going after you on that ship back then wasn’t just a professional courtesy despite what I said.” He paused, formulating his turbulent thoughts. “It was an instinct-driven decision, and not just because I was going to save the keeper of the time stone, but the feelings were so inexplicably sudden.”   
  
Tony paused shortly to consider his words before he continued.

“I don’t think there was anything more devastating than when you left me there after sacrificing the time stone. Not only was I left alone, but I had a lot of time to really reconsider what I was doing with myself - and it would have been a lie to say you didn’t occupy my thoughts in every waking moment I was out there in space. I could never hold what you did against you, it was bigger than any sacrifice I could have made and at the time I had it so backwards. But I was able to put my faith in your decisions. Something just told me in the end, _somehow_ everything would work out… And it did, you came through despite our losses.”

Setting his cup down, Stephen curled his free arm around Tony to pull him in close as he started to talk about the Battle of New York's fallout, but winced at the mention of leaving Tony alone on Titan. "I knew you could do it. And that it had to be you. But if there had been any other way..." He trailed off and shook his head.

Instead the sorcerer simply brushed at the man's cheek with a smile. "You living wasn't a guarantee that we would win. You had to take the right steps _yourself_ ... I couldn't guide you. But you did it. _You_ did. _You_ made that infinitesimal chance into a reality. I just made sure you were on the right path. So the one who came through _was you_."

“I really wish I had taken you the other night, you are the most charming man I’ve ever met, beautiful, intelligent. But I knew something was wrong, and you weren’t yourself. I couldn't live with myself knowing I’d done something so pig-headed if we weren’t on the same page, I could have ruined _this_ … I’m glad I didn’t because I don’t know where we would stand right now if I had…”

Allowing for a moment of silence, Stephen rubbed at the side of his neck a little sheepishly at Tony's flirtations. "Well, I guess we're on the same page now, at least. Taking this slow, right? One day, when the time is right we can talk about the whole sex under the influence of something subject."

Tony shifted as he was drawn in towards Stephen, winding up half laying on Stephen’s chest this time instead of the other way around and his arm in return came up to rest on Stephen’s. He listened to the excuses, could sense the lingering anxiety in the thoughts and words and only continued to gently brush his palm over Stephen’s arm as he spoke in an attempt to soothe him.  
  
“I think you’re worth every part of it.” He commented with a soft murmur as he slowly twisted around in Stephen’s hold so he was facing him. He then carefully slid his knee into the fold between his legs for leverage, put a gentle hand on Stephen’s cheek to cup his face and just stare at him for a drawn out moment before the other arm slid underneath the small of his back to carefully hold him.   
  
He then leaned in. Hopefully he was reading this moment right.   
  
He pressed himself up against Stephen, straddling him and took his lips in his own, cradling his face. His movements were tentative - if Stephen decided this wasn’t the right time he could pull away. But he didn’t. 

A soft smile settled on Stephen's features as Tony drew closer, and Stephen's arms dropped down to curl around Tony's waist to hug him tightly against his body. His eyes fell closed and his head tilted just slightly to rest a cheek against one of the engineer's hands as he indulged in the warmth of the other's body pressed up against him, and the soft lips on his own.  
  
Tony half regretted the thin skin-tight clothing he’d decided to wear underneath his winter attire. It made him very hyper-aware of the sensations of having Stephen’s body pressed up against his own. While it kept him warm (well mostly) it also didn’t put much in terms of layers between them and while it felt _pretty damn amazing_ , he half worried of the effects of the gesture since he’d been pretty _riled_ up earlier.

Stephen managed to keep his little sigh of pleasure quiet, but it didn't change the firm embrace of his arms around shorter man. Tony took a moment to appreciate how easily he could feel muscle against his hands despite the fabric.

The brunette pursued their lip-lock only briefly, he’d push for more but not at the expense of spurring on some much deeper physical impulses he was at the moment doing his best efforts to avoid. He gently sucked on the sorcerer’s lips, enjoying the the warmth between their pressed faces and the bristliness of their beards brushing up against each other.

He stole the other man’s mouth for a little longer before he gently broke it off to pull back to look down at him. His thumb grazed over Stephen’s cheek before his hands slid down to his shoulders and both wrapped gently around the back of his neck, palms resting on the sides just to hold him there as he looked down.  
  
“Does that still technically count as stealing?” The greying brunette’s sly inquiry came as his fingers slid just under the collar of Stephen’s turtleneck to massage the back of his neck.

The sorcerer offered a warm smile as the other pulled away, slowly opening his eyes to observe the other man fondly as he processed Tony's words, before giving him a squeeze around the middle and resting his head back against the headboard to watch him.   
  
"... mmm maybe. In the sense that you didn't ask first and I can't take it back. But there are definitely worse things you could abscond with than some kisses." Stephen said, his voice quiet between them as though he didn’t want to disturb the darkness that had fallen over their igloo.   
  
For a moment he cast his gaze up to see some of the last touches of colour fading from the sky but his eyes soon trained on Tony again, happily.

"If you're concerned about it, I suppose now is as good a time as any to just say I'm happy to give away kisses to you rather freely."

There was a stillness in the darkness, a comfortable quiet. If only the time zones were aligned - perhaps this would have been a good moment, the perfect moment to cuddle up and go to sleep. But due to the time zones it was only around 3PM back home which would make no sense for the two to be turning in for the day.  
  
It was late there however, the rest of the attractions at the resort would be concluded for the day and all they had at the moment was each other in the darkness and the brunette couldn’t help but tense anxiously at that idea.   
  
So many wanton emotions. Strange had opened himself up to all the possibilities, but so many of them were barred - gated behind moral obligations and mutual agreement about taking things slow.   
  
“Oh you may regret opening up that avenue for me. I’ll get you when you least expect it...” He jested softly, bringing his arms up to pull Stephen’s head up against his chest in a hug. He was careful not to press the sorcerer’s head too tightly into his reactor.

"Hmm... I can think of worse things than surprise kisses you know." Stephen's face was hidden against the other's chest as he rested his head there.

"This has been really nice." The sorcerer murmured after a moment, "I... don't think I can do this for several days however. I have certain obligations to the Sanctum that I need to attend to and admittedly I only had Wong agree to look after the Sanctum until around seven. I figured we might do dinner or something, I didn't exactly expect all of this."

Tony gave Stephen a gentle squeeze before he let his hold go slack, arms simply resting over Stephen’s shoulders. Tony was no stranger to the daily obligations, he was lucky enough in fact to have gotten the time he did out of Stephen uninterrupted.  
  
“Well as much as I don’t want to, what say you we call it a date and head back? Not like there won’t be more to come in the future.” Tony gave Stephen's head one gentle stroke before reluctantly leaning back into Stephen’s hold, putting some space between them.   
  
He’d been so warm and comfortable, and with the addition of the information shared tonight there was a certain tether, a bond between them that hadn’t been there before. The two had approached some bridges, crossed a few - but others were left untouched for later that they would _hopefully_ cross in the future.

Stephen sighed a bit softly, watching him with a happy smile.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to rush us off or anything..." He admitted, reticent to move from his spot even as the cloak caught on to the idea and started to settle itself around him again.  
  
"We'll make plans to do this again...? I mean, not this _exactly_ I imagine, but... I've enjoyed your company immensely, and I'd like to do this again. Maybe somewhere a little warmer?" Stephen suggested, starting to reach for clothes to bundle himself up in again.

Tony slumped back onto the bed with a persistent smile.  
  
“It’s fine Steph, just shows you’re so excited to get this date done so we can have the next. Though, with warmer in mind, I should pick a place that will get the two of us out of our shirts and out getting a tan. Wouldn’t mind seeing a little bit of that skin...” He nodded his head as he watched Stephen layer on the jackets once more.   
  
Tony gathered his own jackets and things, sliding off of the bed and dressing himself. He was sad the night had to end, but still had one more ace in the hole before the two of them parted ways. He was basically holding his breath until the right moment.   
  
“I’ll need to turn in the room keys real quick before we head back. Walk with me?”

Stephen smirked a little knowingly at Tony's suggestion.

"You practically read my mind. Though if you think I'm going to tan rather than just turn into a lobster under too much sun, you've definitely misunderstood my capabilities. You go ahead and tan to your heart's content though. I can't think of a single reason I'd want to stop the sun from kissing you all over..."   
  
He hummed happily, finishing getting himself dressed again as he pulled his gloves on and the second key card out of his pocket to offer back to Tony. "Of course. It would be my pleasure."

“Hey, I love seafood! And don’t think for a second I wouldn’t mind lathering that body of yours in some sun-screen - not only for the excuse to get my hands all over you but to see that nude upper-bod of yours again in more favourable conditions.” He clicked his teeth with a wink as he stood up and put his shoes on, waiting at the door.  
  
Tony retrieved the key, he snatched Stephen’s hand up and double-checked the room to make sure they hadn’t left anything behind despite their brief visit before leading them both outside and to the registration desk. 

"Are you going to be alright running your hands all over me like that?" Stephen teased softly, though he was all smiles at the notion as he followed the man through the snow, using the thought of warm weather to keep himself warm. "Might I recommend Balustrada Beach? It's not quite the middle of nowhere, but it's somewhere that I somehow doubt you'll draw the usual fanfare. Across the promenade from the beach are several restaurants, since you _like seafood_ so much."   
  
He turned in the keys and nodded to the receptionist who almost looked confused to see him checking out the same day he checked in - but didn’t raise the question. Guiding Stephen outside, he dragged them over to a secluded area where they wouldn’t be seen and Tony turned to the sorcerer with a nod waiting for the next part.   
  
“Alright, light it up Potter.” He gently squeezed his hand.

As they reached a quiet spot in the snow, Stephen took a quick look around before returning the squeeze and releasing Tony's hand to open a portal back to Tony's apartment in the compound.

“I think the question we need to ask ourselves is: are _you_ going to be okay with me running my hands all over your body like that?” Tony turned the question right around on him and stepped over the breach into his apartment as the familiar glowing ring of sparks forged the port way home. “But since I picked this place - I think it’s only fair you picked the next, and you won't ever hear me arguing about seafood and warm weather.”

"I'm not the one who keeps insisting on behaving myself, while simultaneously lamenting not making a move." Stephen pointed out with a wry smile. "So I suppose we'll figure out schedules and the like when the both of us have a better idea of what's going on. Luckily a beach doesn't require preplanning, so we can sort it out just... whenever we have time. Mind you there might be some time difference issues there."  
  
With a gentle tug he reached in and pulled Stephen through the divide into his room with him, his chest was pounding anxiously as his other hand delved into his pocket to retrieve a small box.   
  
Tony’s room was bright on the other side in contrast to the night-lit snowy pathway they’d just previously been venturing through. It was mid-afternoon, lights were off in his apartment with only the late sun providing light through the large wall of windows in his room, Friday greeting them both on the way in.   
  
Tony deliberated, then grabbed Stephen’s hands with a gentle smile, he leaned up and put a quick, short and proper kiss on Stephen’s lips - nothing lingering. His nerves were frayed, but not because of that. Stephen barely had time to respond before he was gone.   
  
Stephen allowed the portal to close behind him, cutting off the frigid cold from Tony's apartment. His fingers closed around Tony's hand with a little smile as he leaned to return the kiss with a soft peck on the cheek.

“Well, I have to say Strange - that was quite the date.” He started with a nervous laugh. “Kind of a ride, maybe a bit heavy for a first but I thoroughly enjoyed myself.” He rubbed Stephen’s hands softly. His voice trailed off as if he had more to say, fiddling with the small item in his pocket restlessly.  
  
"It really was quite something. Thank you for inviting me out... It was a lot of fun." The sorcerer smiled warmly in response, squeezing Tony’s hand.

Tony continued to finger the small velvet box in his pocket, he pulled it out and slipped it into the hand that he held, playing it off as some sort of casual nonchalant act. The transfer was graceful but in all honesty he was _kind of a nervous wreck_ during the process.   
  
“I’ll check back with you later about scheduling. I’ll pick a time where I’m not sandwiched in between meetings and company obligations and see if we can’t possibly work out a little more time off for the next date?” The apple bobbed on his neck and he nervously looked away. 

Stephen's eyes dropped curiously to the box at first before a tenseness settled over him as he looked between Tony and the box at first. Tony heard the creaking of the hinges in the small box, the quiet that followed - and then the air thickened.

“Don’t think this is anything much, I made it the other day. It’s for your hand...” He was so nervous, his thoughts had a hard time coming together and he failed at explaining what exactly the item in the box was.

He knew this was risky, but impulse and thought had driven him to create this gift which was perhaps _currently a little_ inappropriate for their relationship. As Stephen’s silence dragged on - his chest tightened. The sensation of an ethereal force reaching within and crushing his heart, churning his guts and twisting his throat was the result of his overactive and anxious mind.   
  
He swallowed - daring to look back up to Stephen, ready for what was to come.   
  
Rejection possibly? 

"It's lovely. Thank you." Clicking the box closed again, he tucked it away and offered Tony a weak smile. "So just text or... whatever and we'll make arrangements when we've both got some time...?"

What he got was a very lacquered response. For his protection and for Stephen’s he pointed towards a future _but unspecified date_. Good that plans were being made, but at the same time it felt like a failed interview, where when you didn’t get the job right on the spot the manager would try to glaze over the interviewee with that text-book ‘we’ll call you.’ Something Tony was guilty of doing on multiple occasions to an insurmountable variable of people.

With his hands free of the box, Stephen created a portal back to the Sanctum, taking a moment to press a tentative kiss to Tony's forehead before stepping back and through the portal.

"I'll talk to you soon..."

The kiss eased his conscience a little. He raised a hand to wave at Stephen, but only caught his back as the man disappeared much too quickly behind a twisting ring of sparks. All that was left as the portal closed was a few bouncing embers, a few crackling stars... And an empty room in which Tony’s thoughts could pivot and fester.  
  
_Good job Tony, subtle, veeeery subtle._


	2. Rain Check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner and a movie? What could possibly go wrong? Besides the movie being completely neglected and the two sating their hunger with anything but the meal they'd ordered in.

Another couple weeks passed by since their date which left the two men plenty enough time to digest their feelings on the outing. While their night had its high points and its low points - Tony had enjoyed himself.  
  
However the last move he made left him to deal with a festering anxiety that latched onto his subconscious and seemed to spread like a slow-growing virus. Staying regimented to his faculties, Tony had neither turned to the bottle or any type of inebriation to quell those fears, rather once again burying himself in his work in the most kosher ways to escape his thoughts.  
  
Meetings, work, business trips, _more work_ \- all to misdirect from the fact that he was under the impression he’d pushed too far and convinced Stephen was completely weirded out to the point where he wanted nothing to do with him. It was all the workings of an overactive imagination and for as much fear that dominated his thoughts - it was weighed on a scale against all the good - the strong, positive feelings he felt towards the other man.  
  
_Fears be damned._  
  
Picking up his phone he stared at it, then put it down and paced around the room a few times. Friday, startling him as she spoke up.  
  
“Shall I call Doctor Strange for you Mr. Stark?”  
  
Tony jumped a little in his skin but shook his head.

“No! No. It’s fine. I got this. Thanks Fri.”  
  
He picked up his phone pursing his lips before he decided on texting Stephen instead.  
  
“T: Schedule finally cleared up, got time tomorrow in the afternoon for coffee? Avengers compound, upstate New York.”  
  
He couldn’t quite recall whether Stephen had even been to the workshop segment of the facility before but texted a photo to him anyways, it would be interesting to show him around. He stared at the message for another minute, deliberating before finally mashing his finger down on the send key and turning away from his phone as if it had just turned into a blinding light.

"S: Is around 2PM acceptable?"

“T: It’s a date, see you at 2PM in the workshop, “  
  
Tony half wondered if Stephen would catch the pun in that, it was so cheesy it made him chuckle to himself.  
  
Through a series of meetings and an express to Germany and back in the morning - although rather exhausted and depleted looking, a coffee date in all sense of the words was just what the doctor ordered. And not to make things complicated they would just sit and talk in the workshop.

Tony figured he wouldn’t keep Stephen too occupied, he’d had some pizza sent down from the compound’s cafeteria, sitting on a dolly with a coffee machine/hot water boiler combination filled and ready to go with a variety of higher-grade loose-leaf teas.  
  
He didn’t take the time to dress nice, he was just in whatever he was already wearing that day - that being a black tank, cargo pants with a couple grease stains on his cheeks (for good luck). Maybe he was taking ‘casual’ to an entirely new level but given their conversation on the previous date they had - casual wasn’t going to drive Stephen away from him, especially when on multiple occasions Stephen had seen him _dirtier_ and much more beaten up.

When was Tony Stark ever the advocate of being conventional, anyway?  
  
Regardless, there was an anxious knot in his stomach and given that Stephen had once again come through and set a time, things didn’t seem to be as bleak as he’d been expecting.

The sorcerer's prompt arrival at 2PM in the workshop came with the man in his standard robes, though the cloak was conspicuously absent as he stepped through the portal. He paused to watch the man quizzically for a moment before collecting himself and speaking.  
  
"Good afternoon," Stephen offered by way of greeting. His eyes moving away from Tony to take in the rest of the room curiously. He took up a seat near Tony, offering a smile as he sat himself down, dutifully not touching anything even as he seemed to notice the teas and coffee maker in their place. "You've got quite the set up here."

“Talk about right on the dot.” Tony flashed a broad smile, uncertainties fading in that moment. He moved a table over between them, put the pizza box down before walking around to Stephen’s side where he had a momentary inner battle with himself about whether he should proceed with his first instinctive thought or not.  
  
Daring to be impulsive he placed a hand on the sorcerer's shoulder before leaning over to place a greeting kiss on his cheek. Stephen seemed startled at first by the hand on his shoulder, though at least it was warning enough to keep him from being startled by the kiss that followed. His face didn’t linger while his hand did, staying on the other man’s shoulder. The sorcerer's gaze remained fixed on the pizza nevertheless.  
  
“I figured we could do something a little more _intimate_ this time.” His thumb brushing over Stephen’s shoulder with a sly smile. While his words were, as always, filled with ambiguous double-meanings pointing towards inappropriate behaviour the setting was in direct opposition to that.

Stephen chuckled softly to himself as he shrugged a shoulder.

"A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives _precisely_ when he means to. It helps when he doesn't have to concern himself with distance or traffic." He added with a small grin as his attentions settled on the pizza.

"Intimate coffee date with pizza, is it? With you all covered in grease... I hope I wasn't interrupting anything?"

“Nope - lubed up and ready to go, just for you baby.” Tony cackled and finally let go of Stephen returning to the other side of the table and reaching over to flick the machine on to start the kettle. Meanwhile, Tony poured himself a cup of coffee and that would do just fine for him.

Stephen swallowed a little hard as he shuffled himself in his seat, but didn't respond as Tony moved away to deal with the hot water.

“Can I offer the good doctor some tea? Assuming that’s what you wanted, coffee is ready in case you preferred to throw me a curveball.” He threw back the cardboard lid on the pizza box and nudged a couple of napkins across the table.  
  
"I don't suppose you have a rooibos available?" Stephen finally responded with a small chuckle. "I'm not much of a fan of coffee. Too many long nights at the hospital with just coffee to keep me going. I'm about done with coffee at this point, I think." Taking the napkins, he set them aside looking contemplative and after a few moments of deliberation he grabbed a slice and looked up to meet Tony’s gaze for the first time since he arrived.

“I’m going to take an educated guess and say you prefer loose leaf?” Of course Tony already knew the answer, he’d been exposed to all different cultures that were avid tea-drinkers but he was trying to be crafty. With good business came good connections - as soon as he’d taken a more forward approach to his relationship with Stephen he’d reached out to one of his business partners in Japan to see if he couldn’t import some of the teas they frequently offered him in their meetings.  
  
Tony lifted the crate onto the table, all the labels on them had been handwritten, marking them asl home-grown and not a mass-produced collection. Fresh was always the preference no matter what product, food, tea or alcohol. He searched through the rustic looking tins and looked at the label, placing it down onto the table before putting the small collection back on the floor.  
  
“I don’t know why anyone would ever drink anything without caffeine in it, but to each their own.” He prodded softly turning the tin in his hands. He then opened it, a soft aromatic sweet and smokey smell wafted from the tin in a pungent wave. It smelled really good, and he kind of wanted some - but he had a _reputation as a coffee drinker to uphold_. He set the tea to steep, a timer for a couple minutes and turned back to Stephen with that same sauve smirk.

After having a bite of pizza and taking the time to watch Tony as he sorted through teas, Stephen smiled a little and set the pizza down on a napkin, shrugging lightly.

"Some people have caffeine allergies and not all tea is decaffeinated, though I've never heard of a tea that was quite as heavy on caffeine as coffee itself. As for me? I don't have any particular need for help staying awake and alert right now. I'm well rested and have reason enough to keep engaged."

“Caffeine doesn’t always have to be for staying awake, I drink it to relax too ya know!” Tony goaded vivaciously.  
  
After a moment, he blinked up at Tony with a look of confusion, and then amusement. "You do realize that caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant, right? It also increases your blood pressure. So any effect that feels relaxing to you is likely because you have an addiction to caffeine and your body is simply reacting with relief to the familiarity of it in your system rather than actually helping you relax."  
  
He chose to ignore the comment about the coffee addiction and chewed on the crust of his slice, staring back at Stephen with a challenging look, before leaning back in his chair and peering over at Strange from across the table.

“It’s nice seeing you again by the way, a real treat in between all these boring meetings.”  His eyes had flicked to the man’s fingers to see if he was wearing the gift he’d given, though he recognized that if he had it around his neck, tucked into his tunic he would probably not be able to see it.  
  
"I hope the meetings are going well at least. But I appreciate you being able to take some time out of your ever so busy schedule to sit down for a late lunch with me. How have you been otherwise? It's been a little bit since we've seen one another." At Stephen’s mention of _finding time_ Tony couldn’t help but think that he could have honestly canceled any of his plans and _made_ time for Stephen if the sorcerer was the one that reached out first.

“Yeah, likewise. I can only imagine the separation anxiety Wong is dealing with when you step out of the house for a few hours.” He winked.

"Wong spends much less time at the Sanctum than you might think. It's usually just me around for the majority of the day. We both have our own duties. But his lack of consistent presence is why I have to make arrangements to visit. We do make an _effort_ not to leave the Sanctum standing empty and unguarded, which means having to make sure that Wong's not busy with things at Kamar-Taj before I go anywhere, unless there's an emergency or I'm not leaving the neighbourhood."

“And here I thought I’d be competing for your attentions and affections with him. I can’t imagine taking a day off from scaring off ghosts would really set the world off balance to that much of an extreme.” Tony jested lightly, he took the diffuser out of the water and grabbed a quaint little personal pottery kettle and cup, setting it down in front of Stephen. He stood up, stepping over near Stephen, only to politely place a palm on the clay lid of the kettle as he stood and poured the tea up to the brim of the cup.  
  
“Besides, couldn’t your cloak do good enough to scare off threats to the Sanctum? That thing is like an angry house cat - I bet it could keep inter-dimensional burglars away?” He sat back down, going for the pizza box and pulling out a slice of pizza.

"Hardly. Wong can be demanding of my attentions but it's usually only because my attentions are _needed_ wherever he's demanding them. But it's about more than just scaring off ghosts or... _inter-dimensional burglars_ ," Stephen chuckled as he curled his hands around the cup of tea with a smile and a soft 'thank you.'

"People come to the Sanctum looking for my help with things they can't understand and don't know how to explain, and there's a lot of stuff in the Sanctum I've been steadily working on archiving since inheriting it. And that's saying nothing about the library which... is still a disaster." The sorcerer shrugged as though the subject weighed on him.  
  
"But my care of the Sanctum isn't exclusively because of that kind of thing. The Sanctum is one of the protective wards over the globe and there are only three of them. In the time it would take someone - say, Doctor Banner - to destroy one of them if there were simultaneous attacks on the other two wards... it would be a disaster. So I try to limit my outings to when someone can babysit the house.”

“Ok good because I just wanted to make sure you guys didn’t have this fun 3-way going on with the cloak while I’m not there that you’re specifically choosing to leave out the details of that...” Tony quirked his brow in teasing manner as he took a bite from the slice of pizza in his hand.  
  
He wanted to bite his tongue at the comment but he was literally just bursting to get his peace of mind in about the Sanctum. He knew full well that Stephen’s stance on leaving the Sanctum unguarded was not ever going to be up for debate - that wouldn’t stop him from pulling the poor sorcerer’s leg on it a bit.  
  
“… but see you were also at the Sanctum when Bruce came flying through the window, so what difference did it really make? Doesn’t that kind of negate the purpose if all someone needed to do was hurl a few-tonne Hulk through the window? Or a meteor at that...” Tony’s gaze was evasive for that moment.

"Tony, that whole experience _was_ a disaster, I think we can all agree. And one Sanctum going down due to an entirely unpredictable circumstance such as a wild Hulk appearing or a meteor strike is why it's not the _only_ one, giving us the opportunity to rebuild," Stephen explained calmly, watching Tony as he spoke.  
  
"Plus, the ward isn't the _only_ reason the Sanctum needs caring for. As you pointed out in a rather round-about way - there are things of value in the Sanctum, and while there are certain ways the Sanctum can protect itself there are plenty of things in the Sanctum that would be dangerous if they got out as well. We take a lot of precautions when it comes to these kinds of things. There are _reasons_ people don't really know we exist. It's my job to make sure things _stay_ that way as much as possible."  
  
Stephen exhaled a long sigh as he dropped his gaze to his tea and Tony couldn’t help but roll his eyes at that explanation, though he was starting to get invested in arguing with Stephen, enjoying the fire and fervor of the other man’s personality. After all, this was what started everything, their witty banter, their snipes and jabs. Tony lived for it all, it’s what initially attracted him towards the sorcerer.  
  
Working all cooped up in his office every day made it hard to really invest passion into anything else but his own projects. He was passionate about his practice in meetings but that was exhausting, sitting there and trying to sell his product to people he didn’t know? Rubbing elbows - well, he was Tony Stark, he didn’t need to _rub elbows with anyone_ . But that didn’t necessarily mean he didn’t need to be cordial and respectful to both his local and foreign investors.  
  
In all honesty arguing with Stephen was a very simple pleasure for the man - almost like a young brat in middle-school sitting behind the cute girl he had a crush on, kicking their chair from behind and pulling their hair to get a reaction out of them just to have the spotlight.  
  
“Yeah, but can’t you put some sort of spell or something on the Sanctum to protect it from that? I’m sure you've got some _home security_ spell all tucked away in that mystical arsenal of yours somewhere.” He raised a hand, pointing the half-eaten crust of his pizza at Stephen as he gestured in emphasis of his point.

Stephen snorted a little at the man's suggestion, shaking his head with a look of amusement as he started to lean back in his seat, before remembering he was on a stool and catching himself before he fell back off the seat. Tony didn’t miss that flounder.

"A home security spell? Really?" Waving a hand dismissively Stephen shook his head.  
  
“Yeah - a home security spell. Not even joking there if it means I get more time with you.” He snickered as Stephen was regaining his composure.  
  
"Many of the threats we face are also magical in nature in some way or another. With sufficient knowledge it's easy enough to untangle dormant spells like that. And yes, there are spells out there that could probably do the trick, but they're spells created and used by someone much older and much more powerful than I am - and she isn't alive anymore to teach them. So it's safe to assume that there are others out there that are more knowledgeable and more powerful than I am _still_ , and despite the Sanctum's own natural defenses I have a certain protectiveness of that building."  
  
A small smile graced Stephen’s features after a moment and the sorcerer gave a small shrug. "Besides, it's my home and the only one I have. I'm protective of what's mine."  
  
Tony’s eyes were glued to Stephen, if he wasn’t checking out his face or his body trying to picture what the magus looked like under his garbs then he was focusing in on those beautiful grey-blue eyes of his, getting lost in their intense gaze.  
  
“I’d be more than happy to install a system of my own if you wanted to let me…” He teased softly.  
  
“I mean then - hey! You could move in with me!” Tony was definitely over-exaggerating. But it wasn’t like the engineer was trying to hide any of it. Although the offers were serious, the jests were light-hearted.

"And what, treat the Sanctum as some kind of 9-5 job? Do you realize how many people would then have to come all the way out here to hunt me down if they needed help? And I'm not talking about other sorcerers, either. I'm talking about the people of Manhattan who have a constant state of terrible luck when it comes to anomalies of all sorts; magical and mundane alike. I don't simply _know_ when someone needs me, _they_ find _me_." Stephen gave him a confused look for a moment, then simply rolled his eyes a little at that idea.

" _Or_ , and this might be a _crazy thought_ so bare with me, you could always come by the Sanctum to visit if you wanted to. I realize that's a bit of a trip for you to take generally, but either you can text a heads up for a portal or put on that fancy suit of yours and be across New York in the blink of an eye, I'm sure."  
  
“What?! Stephen that’s _absolutely absurd_ , I don’t know how you get these silly little ideas in your head - that’s ridiculous.” Tony zested him with clear sarcasm to his voice. “But, you make a compelling argument, so how can I refuse. Honestly if that’s all I need to do to get more face time with _the_ Sorcerer Supreme then you’ve sold me.” He chuckled softly.  
  
“But honestly, yeah I could probably fly myself over there in no time at all if you _had your hands tied_ at the moment.” The engineer wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at Stephen.  
  
“And what if I show up at your door during work hours with _terrible luck seeking some sort of relief_ from _forces unknown._ ” Tony faked some inquisitive response. "Would you likewise be there to save me as well?"

"I know, I know," Stephen lamented dramatically, "Sometimes I just let my thoughts get away from me." Still, Stephen smirked at Tony a bit as the man continued on. He couldn't help but laugh as the other continued on.  
  
"I mean, it would _be my duty_ to help you, wouldn't it? Not just as a friend or boyfriend, but as the Master of the New York Sanctum!"

“Oh yeah, you could be my master anytime in that case.” Tony bit down on the last piece of crust. And then his mind went off on the most odd tangent as he had a small anxiety spike. Like, _why the hell people don’t eat their damned pizza crusts when they order pizza_ . Seriously…  
  
“If we kept things a lot more casual, I think this would be much more manageable. Even if you’re busy it wouldn’t be hard to zip over from the compound.” The suggestive tone had faded and he was serious once again, sentimental even.  
  
He smiled, eyes had lowered to stare at the box of pizza with some new-found shyness at the idea of much more regular visits. It thrilled him, made him absolutely ecstatic at the idea.  
  
He procured his mug and fiddled with the porcelain cup in thought before taking another sip.

Stephen continued to chuckle softly to himself at first, before leaning against the table with a smile. "Try to text first? Just in case we're in the middle of something a little more dangerous? I'd hate for you to walk in on something and get hurt. I want to be able to say it's an open door policy but I also want to make sure you're safe, and as much as I trust in your ability to take care of yourself, I'd rather there weren't any accidents."  
  
His smile softened as he looked at his cup of tea. "Like I said, I'm protective of what's _mine_."

“Just like last time…” Tony chuckled. “Gee doc I remember it like it was yesterday and I had you stumbling over the edge of my bed trying to get me out of my clothes.”

The soft laugh tapered off as he felt a certain swell within his chest as Stephen mentioned his concern. He understood that the other cared for him, admitted his feelings for him a few weeks ago. But hearing it said aloud never got old; it never lost its charm and novelty, or had any less effect on him.  
  
Tony fought the urge to get up out of his chair and pull the other man into a crushing hug, or take the sorcerer’s lips in his own once more. He didn’t know why he had chosen not to, whether it was Stephen’s more reserved nature or the hot tea and a box of pizza between them. The urge and drive were there, but Tony simply settled for a soft smile as he melted into his chair, anxiety eating away at the back of his mind.

"And I'm sure you think about it every night before bed, hm?" Stephen teased with a crooked smile, peering up at the engineer over the edge of his teacup as he brought it to his lips to sip at it.

“I can give you the gentlemen's answer and say that I respect you as an individual and I’m not looking to objectify all of _this._ ” Tony waved his hand around to gesture at the indigo-clad sorcerer in his chair. “Or I can give you the _honest_ answer and tell you you’re smoking hot and a real fine piece of work.” He dawdled around the answer. “But yeah, on nights when I have trouble sleeping - can you blame me? Not like you don’t do the same.” His grin stretched from ear-to-ear as he rocked in his chair from across the table with his absolutely shameless honesty.  
  
“We’re only human…” His fingers anxiously repositioned themselves on the coffee mug after he spoke. With that freeform admission all he had on his mind was the visual of bending that tight-ass over and rutting him six-ways til’ Sunday. Or the more intimate fantasy of wining and dining his lovely boyfriend and then slowly shedding Stephen of each of those layers of clothing, some close-quarters cuddling or maybe even some over-the-clothes action. Boy did he have a weak-spot for half-dressed, furious, lust-driven sex.  
  
Tony bit his lip, the sexual tension between them was almost palpable and Stephen's crooked smile became an amused smirk at Tony's response.

"You can respect me as an individual and still think I'm attractive and objectify me, you know. It's just a matter of balancing it all out. I would know, because you're right - I absolutely do think of it more often than I probably should. I think you're gorgeous and brilliant, and _obnoxious_ yet somehow so very _charming_ about it... I don't think I'd find you nearly as attractive as I do if it weren't for some of those other qualities as well. They're all part of the tapestry of Tony Stark. And as tapestries go, it ranks pretty highly on the sexy scale."  
  
Stephen busied himself with the rest of his slice of pizza finally, his expression oddly shy.

“Tell that to all the chicks I tried to hit on in the past, and then the big red mark on my face afterwards when it didn’t work out.” Tony wiggled his eyebrows at Stephen. Of course Stephen had to be absolutely sickeningly sweet about all of this, trust the wizard to absolutely leave Tony in the dust with all those wonderful compliments and words of adoration.  
  
He felt so humbled, so cared for and even though Stephen was a little more straight-edged about their relationship, it only made tender words evoke those soft feelings within his chest.

Stephen had thrown a rock into a field full of butterflies and they all _scattered_ .  
  
“I can’t say I’d find you half as interesting if you didn’t bite back every time I prodded you with the hot-iron rod.” Tony leaned forward with his hands folded on the table, sending a small wink and a grin in Stephen’s direction. He then reached forward and plucked one of Stephen’s hands up. “Also - I have a thing for battle-scars and imperfections. These hands of yours? Sexy as all hell.”  
  
He ran a thumb over the top of his middle finger, exploring the mottled and irregular scar-tissue on top with care.

"I can't speak for their experiences with you, only my own." Stephen said, chuckling softly as he finished off his pizza and tried to clean the grease from his fingers with one hand, simply allowing Tony to hold the other one. He cast Tony a curious look for a moment, then shrugged a shoulder lightly.  
  
"I honestly don't know how else to handle you sometimes. You just bring it out of me, I guess." Stephen smiled a little, though he rested his gaze on the hand Tony held hesitantly before looking away.  
  
"So this is your workshop, hm? You've got quite the set up here..."

“Oh, well you know, I’m always here - usually it’s not this much of a mess, but there was some stuff I didn’t have time to put away… If you wanted to get up and look at some of the stuff I’m working on, feel free to _touch and handle anything you want._ ” Tony's impish grin persisted.  
  
The brunette had stopped playing with Stephen’s hand and turned to look over his shoulder as the other indicated at his surroundings. Just like his old lab he had a small area with a bunch of his old suits on display, numerous holo screens and tables mounted around the room with scattered parts and tools either on the tables, counters or even more often than expected - the floor. Accented by Dum-E running amok in the workshop who - speak of the devil, was currently puttering it’s way over to Stephen to curiously inspect him. This immediately drew Tony's attention back to scold the robot.

"You watch yourself," Stephen grumbled at him with a little smirk before finding his attention drawn to the bot and his expression became immediate curiosity and fascination.

“Hey - what did I say about you being here while company is over?” Tony had to lift a hand to point an accusatory warning finger at the robot. "Get going before you break something or hurt someone." It responded with a solemn sound, lowering it’s crane and slinking away.  
  
"... do you often talk to your robots, Tony?" He inquired absently, watching after the bot a little wistfully.

Dum-E managed to knock a loose-hanging part off the counter and Tony mirthlessly watched as it crashed to the floor with the robot’s slow-movements, though it didn’t quiet the sorcerer’s delighted little laugh at the machine’s antics. It stopped, looked at its master and went to pick up the part, moving it and putting it back up on the counter where it previously sat.  
  
Tony rolled his eyes.  
  
“That’s butterfingers for you - and yes I talk to my robots just like I talk to Fri. You tend to get a little stir-crazy when you’re cooped up in a work space for prolonged periods of time, you know when you don’t have anyone else around you to keep you company? Hey, maybe I might already be crazy but it keeps my head screwed on straight.” Tony leaned back, lifting the cup again and staring at the black liquid.

"Butterfingers, huh? Cute." Apparently it wasn't just animals, or sentient cloaks that Stephen felt that odd bubble of warmth over - apparently it was just entities with personalities in general. And the bot had plenty of personality, which was no surprise given who'd made it.  
  
"I'm not judging. I talk to a cloak, so..." The doctor offered a helpless shrug and a warm smile to the engineer as he finished off his tea. "Is it sentient? It seems to listen and respond well enough... and given your predisposition towards making A.I.s..."

“It’s sentient if you want to believe it is. But then here in begs the question; is my boyfriend crazy because he talks to robots? Or is he good company because he talks to other sentient life forms?” Tony quirked the corner of his mouth up lifting his hands as if to gesture weighted scales.  
  
“I guess you could use the same argument for your flying cape. But I think that thing has a lot more personality than butterfingers over there and probably causes far less destruction to boot.” He pointed his thumb at the robot and rolled his eyes. “In some universe somewhere I can see it getting along with Dum-E. Yeah I’m talking about you Dum-E, knock over another thing and I’m putting the dunce cap on you.” The robot gave a sad affirming couple chirps to that.

"Oh the cloak can be plenty destructive when it wants to be. When an ancient sentient magical relic decides it's pissed off about something I assure you, _you know about it_ ." Stephen sighed softly to himself and gave a helpless shrug.  
  
"...So I don't think you're _that_ kind of crazy. People talk to their pets, people yell at their televisions. Sometimes saying things out loud helps to make something make more sense, or give it a new perspective, and if something exhibits behaviours that might be perceived as humanoid in any way then they make for a much more natural target to talk at. The more they seem to understand, the more it tends to reinforce those kinds of behaviours. So I don't see why there's anything wrong with conversing with something aloud, regardless of its ability to actually understand or respond to you..."  
  
Stephen smiled gently.

"And your bot seems to respond to outside stimulus easily enough, communicating emotions of some sort."

“Seriously? I figured you had that cloak of yours on a tight leash, or it was something you directly controlled at will. I guess that’s one thing I don’t need to worry about from my A.I. - well, maybe some sass here and there from Fri.” And at that the A.I. responded with a _‘Very funny sir’_. Tony only looked skywards to blow a kiss into the air. “Love you sweety.”

He was really only showing validity to Stephen’s point.

"Oh goodness no. I can barely stop it from embarrassing me in front of people when we're not in some kind of business mode. And even then sometimes it has a different idea of what we should be doing than I do. And it _will_ fight me on it. Generally with success. It's an ancient relic and I can only imagine the things it's seen and the knowledge it possesses, but naturally..." Stephen shrugged once more, that same helpless shrug as before.  
  
"It rarely takes orders from me, though to be fair it seems to have a good sense of what I _want_ it to do without my saying it often enough. It was much worse when we first met, mind you. I don't know if it's finally warmed up to me, or if I've simply learned to communicate with it better and understand it, or if it's some combination... but sometimes it really does feel as though the cloak is its own person."

Tony thought for a moment.

“Wait - so you didn’t make it or conjure it? You met it? Like bumping into someone on the street and then it just started hanging around you like some house cat that you fed once and won’t go away?” Tony’s exaggeration of the story was a little far-reaching, but he was honestly curious about where and how it came to be, especially if it didn’t listen to Strange.

"No, I definitely neither made nor conjured it. It's existed for far longer than I have, though I can hardly guess at _how_ long. It was one of the relics being kept safe and on display in the New York Sanctum when I was still a rather uppity apprentice learning what sorcerers actually were... learning about our purpose. The cloak defended me without my asking and... yeah, I guess it was a little like I'd somehow fed a stray and it just stayed. Relics have a tendency of choosing their sorcerers rather than the other way around. The cloak... saw something in me, I guess. And I'll probably be grateful for that for every day of my life."

“-Huh, so kind of like Jarvis now. Back in the good ol’ days Jarvis really liked to push my buttons. He is surprisingly, completely sentient now, one of the Avengers - goes by Vision, but hell that’s an entirely different tale - at least I can sleep knowing that’s one less thing I’ll scare you off with”  
  
After a moment, Stephen paused and looked up at Tony in question at first, before smiling a bit knowingly.

"Mmm, yes of course. The Avenger who carries an Infinity Stone around out and openly on his face, right?"

“Yeah, that’s him! Wait - so back to the cloak.” There was an inquisitive mirth in Tony’s voice. “So you two are like an aggressive married couple? I always heard it’s healthy to fight.” He teased softly. Though he was rather interested in the dynamic between Stephen and his apparently very disobedient cloak.

"We aren't _always_ fighting," Stephen's expression became a near pout. "We're just both our own unique entities that have different opinions about how to handle things sometimes.”  
  
His eyes had dropped to the table by the time he finished speaking, his fingers drawing absent designs along the surface of the table as a fond look had settled on his face. He easily accepted the dismissal of talking about Vision - maybe another day, another time, but there was no need to push for now and make their current date awkward. So he simply gave a smile and a nod of acknowledgement.

"Any other surprise kids I should know about?"

“I’m starting to see that thing takes right after you in stubbornness by the sounds of it. You know, pets always tend to mimic their master's personality.” He chuckled enjoying the light-hearted discussion they were having. He continued to fight against the swelling in his chest, the fluttering in his gut that told him to lean in for another kiss. He’d focused in so intently as Stephen spoke, it was nice to have excuses to eye-up the man he had some feelings for rather than just stand by and look like a creeper or a weirdo.  
  
Both things, Stephen was already aware of so what did it matter anyways in the end?  
  
“No more surprises, at least none that I’m aware of.” The brunette sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Unless you count the legion of Ironman suits that also operate under A.I. - I got nuthin.” He slowly reached over to the coffee kettle and poured himself another cup of java. The last little bit in his cup had gone cool and he was in need of more caffeinated beverage to nurse on.  
  
So many of his thoughts were circling around wanting to just cuddle up to Stephen - perhaps to deal with this need he’d simply plan their following dates around movie nights at home where he’d have the opportunity to sit with Stephen on a couch and relax and appease that desire for physical contact.

"Well, it might well be that like attracts like in magic as well," Stephen hummed thoughtfully at that notion. "But who knows? Someone once told me that it was fickle, so I can't imagine how long it must've been without a chosen sorcerer. She certainly made it _sound_ as though it was a big deal." Giving a little shrug, Stephen raised his gaze to offer the fond smile he wore to Tony, not at all appearing to mind the intensity with which Tony observed him.  
  
"So if I've got this right that's... Peter Parker, the A.I. formerly known as Jarvis, now a real boy with his very own Mind Stone, the ever delightful Friday," He gestured towards the ceiling, "and the cute but troublesome bot... Butterfingers? To be honest with you, you've referred to it by a couple names now... so I'm not wholly sure what it's called." After a moment, he tilted his head. "Ah, and I suppose Karen is one of your creations as well?"

“Oh yeah Karen, I always forget about that one and that the kid named her. But the family is big, and it’s always getting bigger with each flop. I swear the Avengers is turning into a group of misfits.” He chuckled at the thought of Stephen arguing with his cloak. “And yeah - I can see the whole like attracts like. One resilient asshole attracts another.”  
  
He winked, but he surely meant that insult in the most endearing way possible. He took a sip from his cup hanging on a thought for a moment. “I guess you could say it’s why we're attracted to each other?” He set his cup down on the table, fiddling with the handle of the mug with a grin.

"Mmm, I wondered whether you meant the cloak and I or you and I by that." Stephen gave him a knowing smirk at that before finally rising to his feet to slowly wander the workshop with a vague interest. He paused for a brief moment as he looked over the suits before continuing along, offering Dum-E a gentle pat as he circled around some.

Tony tilted his head to watch Stephen as he got up and curiously meandered around his work space, inspecting everything he had.  
  
“Well, I’ll leave that for you to decide, doc.” He turned so his elbow was hanging over the back of the chair as he leaned against it to get a little more comfortable.

"I suppose it'll have to apply to _both_ then, won't it?" Stephen smiled, shrugging lightly as he focused his attentions on Tony once again.

"Was the Avengers ever anything _other_ than a family of misfits? It's not like Doctor Banner, the Captain or Thor really seem like they had a place here before the Avengers gave them a reason to rally. And _you_ became a misfit pretty quickly with your whole endeavor as Iron Man." Stephen made his way around to Tony's side of the desk eventually, moving the stool he'd been sitting on to sit beside Tony rather than across from him.

“We’ve all seen shit, gone through hardships and overall it’s difficult to really say we have a place in this world as normal functioning ‘human’ beings. Despite everything being alive because of what we do...” He tried to put some emphasis on that _human_ .  
  
“I guess I could easily be lopped into that category. Likewise yourself.” His eyes trained on Stephen as he took up a seat next to him, other hand in lap and twitching to reach out to him again.

"Well I'm certainly not a part of _your_ family of misfits. But I'll accept the title of misfit in my own right. Fitting in places isn't a thing I do very well anymore outside of Kamar-Taj. Might be the robes though." He added with a playful smile. "Not exactly the modern fashion around these parts."

“I guess so - but I’ll have you know that I absolutely adore the whole magic-man getup just as much as I fancy seeing you in a nice set of casual clothing. I don’t think you could possibly wear anything that wouldn’t be flattering on you. In fact, even _nothing at all_ .” Tony’s eyes ghosted over his form before settling on Stephen’s face with a playful smirk.  
  
He felt a little sheepish under the sorcerer’s attention - yes this was his Stephen, but a the same time there was an air to the other man that almost seemed intense and untamed. As attractive and alluring as those traits were - it was almost like fire and ice.

"Well yes, I do look fairly good in nothing at all," Stephen's smirk echoed Tony's own and the sorcerer played with his looser outer tunic briefly as though he was considering removing the garment.

Tony slowly swallowed the forming lump in his throat as he watched those thin spindly fingers tease at the indigo fabric. The tension was building now and Stephen wasn’t doing anything to help it. If anything could best personify Tony’s expression it would be a dog with a treat sitting on it’s nose being told to wait for the command to chow down.  
  
"Once upon a time I really _did_ make an effort to dress nicely, though." The sorcerer’s hand fell away from his tunic to settle in his lap, but his eyes remained steadily on Tony as his smirk softened into a smile. "Used to be that I'd spend an hour getting ready to go anywhere. Big event, quiet day at work... it was always important to me to be looking my best. After my accident there were a lot of reasons that went by the wayside. Buttons, for example? Giant pain in the ass."

“I feel like I'm being personally attacked by all this - sounds a lot like me and my morning ritual.” Tony’s eyes were glued to Stephen’s fingers. The engineer had to promptly clear his throat as he folded one leg over the other. “Buttons are however fun to pop off when ripping one’s shirt open for varying reasons.”

"And yet look at you now," Stephen chuckled a little, reaching forward to brush his thumb over an oil smear. "Did _this_ take you an hour, too? I'll grant you your hair looks nice, but you're kind of a hot mess. I mean messy is a _good look_ on you, but not the kind of thing I'd expect you took an hour to prepare."  
  
Stephen's pride was clearly basking in Tony's attentions, but the doctor simply smiled warmly at the engineer.  
  
"I'm suddenly very sorry to tell you I don't so much as _own_ a button up shirt anymore. I _do_ have a cardigan with a couple big buttons, but it's hardly the same. Nothing that'll pop buttons all over the floor during frantic undressing..."

There was a slowly forming lump in Tony’s throat, and that felt as though it slowly bobbed when he swallowed. His mouth was suddenly parched and he raised his cup to _quench his thirst_ . Things had suddenly gotten _very hot_ in the workshop and he was starting to realize that Stephen was doing this on purpose, taunting him - fully aware of what he was doing to the poor mechanic.  
  
His breathing hitched softly and at the mention of _hot and messy_ his stomach absolutely rolled and his expression almost went blank, _especially_ when Stephen went so far as to run his finger over the streak on his nose.  
  
“I’m just going to have to buy you something that I could just as soon destroy then - that or at least put magnetic buttons on it… but I do want to see those _babies fly…_ “ Tony leaned forward, unable to keep his hands to himself - raised his left hand to run his fingers lightly through the curled strands of hair that hung over Stephen’s forehead.

" _Oh?_ Then are you buying it for _me_ , or are you really buying it for _you_ ?" Stephen teased softly, his eyes fixed rather intently on Tony's face, taking in his reactions with delight. "Because my getting all dolled up in _any_ fashion is more likely to be for your sake than my own, you know."

“I think we both know the answer to that one Stephen, mostly for me and a little for you…” He flashed him a wide grin. “The nicer you look the more satisfying it will be for me to make a mess of that afterwards…” His hand rand down the side of Stephen’s face, exploring the contours of his jawline before sliding further down to his chest and flatly combing over the front of his tunic. His hand ghosted over his front, feeling the lean muscle underneath the thick layers of indigo fabric.  
  
Leaning forward to hook a couple fingers into the collar of Tony's tank top, Stephen smiled and tugged gently. "C'mere... I want a kiss."

When Stephen’s fingers grabbed a hold of his front he leaned in without any hesitation or reserve to comply with the sorcerer’s demand.  
  
“You don’t need to ask me twice, I’ve been eyeing up that pretty face of yours since you got here.” He smiled, completely taken by the other’s soft yet demanding voice as he leaned in and planted a kiss against Stephen’s lips. As much as he wanted to ravage the other - he had to keep in mind that Stephen’s chair was not a chair, but a stool. So that meant it had no backing and any attempts to get too frisky would result in the both of them tumbling to the floor none too gracefully.

"I've noticed." Stephen leaned into the hand and his smile stayed fixed until it was properly kissed off of his face, his own hands raising to cradle Tony's jaw. The tips of his fingers barely brushed into the engineer's hair before Stephen withdrew his hands to make sure at least one was on the table to steady himself.  
  
His free hand came to tangle gently in Tony's shirt, simply holding him in place for the time being, enjoying the moment but not pushing for anything more intense than light brushes of tongue along the other's lips. The wild sensation of their faces pressed so close together, tongues twisting and colliding with one another as the heat in the room felt like it had risen and every point of contact between their bodies and faces stung so perfectly with an intensely binding heat.

Tony’s hand slid over Stephen's shoulder to rest around his neck, not quite deciding where it wanted to rest until it found purchase, tangled in Stephen’s hair. His other hand gripped at the frontal fabric of Stephen’s tunic. Any longer and he would have been ready to drag the sorcerer right into his lap, stomach swelling and getting _very_ worked up.

But just as quickly and passionately as it had started - did it stop when Stephen pulled away. Tony was ready to protest, to pull him back in when his desires were _mostly_ satiated with Stephen resting his forehead upon his.

"... Thank you." Stephen murmured softly, watching him with a small smile.  
  
“It is my pleasure - and I mean it! Fuck I needed that.” He huffed softly, eyes half lidded as he nodded his head side to side to rub his forehead against Stephen’s. His nails lightly sifted through the other’s hair as he let out a soft exhaled sight.

"Then why didn't you just kiss me...?" Stephen asked playfully, his fingers releasing Tony's shirt and his hands slowly moving to wrap around Tony loosely, scooting the stool a smidgen closer to make that easier and allowing his eyes to fall closed as he simply enjoyed the feeling of the other's fingers in his hair, and his nails along his scalp.  
  
"Instead you'd rather sit there looking at me like I was something coveted but untouchable. I hope you know by now that I'm _not_ untouchable, as much as I enjoy the way you look at me when you're all worked up and trying to contain yourself..." Opening his eyes again he gave Tony a small smirk.

“I mean I definitely did when you got here, I- just-” Tony stopped, completely flustered with no escape. “I wasn’t sure if you felt like being kissed?” He blurted out, nails dragging down the back of Stephen’s head.  
  
“You just have this air about you, like everything is so business - and god I fucking love that but I’m kind of intimidated, even if you don’t mean it that way, things are kind of new and I’m still a little unsure I guess? Even though you’ve already admitted to certain things before. Part of me is embarrassed, or worried I’ll make the wrong move...” Tony averted his eyes, nervous and concerned that this would somehow all go belly up for him like everything else seemed to.  
  
“I just don’t want to fuck this up.” His hands went a little slack and he let his eyes fully closed, not wanting to look Stephen in the eyes.

Stephen sighed softly, releasing his hold on the other to sit on his stool again properly, looking thoughtful.

"I see. I'm sorry. Is there something I can do to make this easier on you? I'm not trying to push anything you're uncomfortable with, and I'm certainly not trying to make things..." Stephen trailed off, instead simply running a hand into his own hair and shaking his head. "I'm sorry. I... don't wanna fuck this up either."

“Hey! No don’t put this on yourself. I’m also kind of an idiot sometimes if not all the time and as redundant as it sounds, it’s nice to hear things reiterated and kind of… confirmed, you know?” Tony felt a tightness in his chest as Stephen shrank away, he didn’t mean to put Stephen in that position.  
  
He stood up from his chair and loosely went to place both his arms back around Stephen’s shoulder and gently tilt his head into his collarbone while he pressed his chin to the top of his noggin.  
  
“We’ll make it work because that’s what we both want. Or I’ll make it work because I’m stubborn and I say so.” He gently rubbed the back of Stephen’s neck, soothing him.

Stephen's forehead rested against Tony's collarbone quietly as he lifted his hands again to wrap them loosely - _very_ loosely - around Tony's waist and let his eyes close. The sorcerer's tone was lighter as he spoke again.  
  
"Of course we'll make it work. Both of us. _Together_." Stephen agreed.

“I did want to ask…” Tony paused for a moment. “In the advent of everything, when’s the next time you’re free for a movie? A casual date at either my place or yours, movie, take-out…” He trailed off as if it wasn’t necessary to imply what would come after. “No more of these week-long latent periods - I’ll make time.” The words came out with a lot more confidence this time.  
  
The question left Stephen quiet once more before he shrugged slightly.

"Thursday perhaps, barring any unforeseen circumstances. Wong is usually at the Sanctum on Thursdays anyway and I doubt I'd be much good for hosting a movie, given your aversion to the only television available in the Sanctum - and the fact that we only have a VCR."

“Well you did insist it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to come over to the Sanctum sometimes, but if Thursday here works then all the better. I can promise you a cheap and inexpensive movie date with some disgustingly greasy take-out and mandatory cuddling on the couch.” Tony kept his voice fairly serious through the explanation of what he had planned for them but he couldn’t help it and the mirth bled through in his voice with a soft chuckle that rumbled throughout his midsection.  
  
“How does that sound? Any special requests for movie and food wise? I can also send something over for Wong so he’s not feeling left out of the equation all alone in the Sanctum. I feel like I kind of owe him for stealing you away all the time.” His fingers fanned out along the back of Stephen’s head and he brushed his fingers through, deeply enjoying the weight of Stephen’s forehead against his chest. Those overhanging bangs of his brushed up against the side of his neck with each movement and almost tickled a bit.  
  
As much as he enjoyed the sensation of having Stephen’s arms around his waist and their bodies gently pressed against one another he couldn’t help but feel that there was something off about the other. He’d given his explanation, told him what he wanted from him but it almost felt like there were other things that were holding the other back, and he wasn’t quite sure what.

"I'm definitely not stopping you from coming by the Sanctum sometimes. If you'd rather do that I'll make arrangements. Tomorrow and the day after I'll be busy regardless, but Monday and Tuesday I should be available at the Sanctum if that's what you'd like to do." Stephen shrugged. "Otherwise, I can do Thursday here. I'm not at all opposed to take-out and cuddling on the couch, and I'm sure Wong would be ecstatic at the notion of free food." The sorcerer made no efforts to move from his spot, content with Tony's hand playing with his hair and the warmth of contact between them.  
  
"I'm not much of a fan of most comedies, but beyond that I'm not terribly picky about movies, or food choices really. So whatever you're feeling suits me fine. Oh," he added after a brief moment, "or medical dramas. Please spare me the medical dramas. Those are exactly the kinds of things that I _can't_ enjoy because the actively erroneous nature of them makes it hard for me to get into."

“What, you don’t find the open portrayal of medical malpractice absolutely hilarious? I would have thought you would have at least enjoyed sitting back and laughing at it.” He prodded lightly but he could feel the slightly tense disposition of the other man. “I’ll pick a good movie, maybe some old war movie or something, there’s a few Rhodey’s been trying to get me to watch.” The brunette softly took in his companion’s scent with a deep breath, fingers starting to idly comb through and play with the grey streaks on the side of Stephen’s head.  
  
“As for food? I guess that will need to be a surprise. Though you will need to tell me what Wong likes, I don’t know a lick about what his tastes are in terms of _American cuisine_ here.” He added a light-hearted chuckle to that. “I could definitely end up stopping by for a coffee or tea with you too later on.”

"It's so far beyond just malpractice!" Stephen groaned in his spot. "Most of the time they're just making shit up, using words they might as well have googled without context or asking an actual medical professional. I mean there are definitely certain movies that they brought in a professional and had to make adjustments for the sake of a movie's flow, and I can kind of overlook it but... it's still all a bit awkward, even if it's a little more along the lines of being worth a laugh."  
  
Stephen finally relaxed some against Tony's chest as the other brushed at his hair, humming thoughtfully. "It doesn't even need to be a good movie. I'm fine with trashy movies that are so bad they're good, too. But the fact of the matter is I haven't watched a movie in a little over five years, so there's a lot of stuff out there I haven't seen. I trust you'll figure something out. Regarding _food_ however, to be honest with you Wong has shown a bit of an appreciation for things of a less greasy nature when it comes to _American_ cuisine."  
  
Stephen shifted his head to press his cheek against Tony's chest rather than his forehead and Tony’s ministrations in Stephen’s hair slowly shifted so his hand was cupping the cheek exposed outwards. His thumb lightly caressed through the gray strands as his fingers curled around the side of his head and he looked down at the top of his head rather fondly, taking in the wonderful sight of his sorcerer curled up against him.  
  
“This might be a bit forward but this makes me wish we lived together, I could honestly just relax with you like this all day, running my fingers through that wonderful mane of yours.” His hands sifted through the short and long strands, softly pulling them back as they circulated once more doing the same motions again and again.  
  
Tony habitually checked his watch and then let out a less relaxed sigh that held more frustration than it did peace of mind.  
  
“I’ve got a meeting in twenty.” He was a little crestfallen as he realized the end of their lunch date was approaching.

Stephen simply hummed a contented agreement, comfortable and relaxed in his spot, perfectly appreciative of the sentiment behind Tony's words. As the other indicated an end to their date, though, the sorcerer's arms wrapped just a little more tightly around the engineer's waist, resisting the idea of letting him go.  
  
Finally he sighed as well and released Tony, pulling back far enough to give the man a once-over before a smile settled on his face. "... you're going to shower and get ready for a meeting in twenty minutes, are you? Or do you plan to just show up like this?"

“I tried to bide my time with you as much as I could - but you’d be amazed at _what I can do in 20 minutes._ ” He smirked, appreciating the gentle squeeze he received from the man in his arms. It meant so much for such a small gesture in relation to everything he’d previously said.  
  
He’d have to keep a mental note that Stephen’s actions always seemed to speak louder than his words.  
  
With another woeful sigh his arms pulled back but not before they lingered, both hands on his shoulders as he briefly buried his face into Stephen’s hair and planted a kiss there. He then released him, waiting for Stephen to do the same.  
  
“Oh, by the way - the teas are a gift to you, all yours. I know I won’t drink any of it when you aren't here.”

"Well, keep them here so I have something to drink when I visit." Relinquishing his hold on Tony entirely, he opened a portal back to the Sanctum as he got to his feet, turning to press a brief kiss to the other's lips and offering a smile. "I'll see you Thursday."

“If you don’t take these Stephen you’re going to find them on your doorstep via courier the next day - that courier being me.” He wiggled his eyebrows and smiled as the other pressed a kiss to his lips. He quickly clamped his arms around Stephen’s waist, one hand slid to his back and he swept the sorcerer off his feet in a rather Disney-esque display as he returned the liplock right back.  
  
He helped Stephen back to balance on his feet before letting go with a wry smile.  
  
“See you Thursday… _or earlier._ ”

To say he was stunned would've been putting it mildly. Stephen looked disoriented, though with a quick wave of the hand shuffling the box through the portal as he gave Tony a look of puzzled affection before following the box through. "Then I'll see you when I see you... have a good day, Tony."

Tony grinned after the portal shut rather confidently, proud that he was able to elicit that sort of reaction out of the normally inexpressive magus. He lived for causing a rise, a fuss, a ruckus and especially with Stephen whenever and wherever he could. Anything to ruffle up that man's overly serious demeanor.  
  
“Well I’ll say that went much better than the last one did.”  
  
“Doctor Strange seemed to thoroughly enjoy your lunch date, he also really enjoyed that kiss - he was rather flustered after that. His heart rate was elevated as he left.” Friday chimed in with her soft voice.  
  
“That’s my gal.” He winked at _nothing._  
  
“Sir, as much as I appreciate your praise, you may want to make haste for your meeting, you have 10 minutes to change and be in Michigan.”  
  
“Shit- call them and tell them I’ll be a few minutes late.” Tony yipped as he rushed upstairs to his bedroom to properly dress himself and give his face a quick wash.  
  
“Already done sir.”

As the week ended and began anew Tony made a few brief appearances at the Sanctum.  
  
The first time Tony showed bearing a bag with several button up shirts as promised - on a day that Stephen had originally indicated that he was free but had turned into a bit of an event. So the visit was distinctly brief and despite Stephen’s many apologies Tony seemed fairly understanding, though he made it clear that a kiss was the price of his early departure. Stephen had no issues paying that price.  
  
By the time the sorcerer was free again, it was rather too late for another visit that night.  
  
That hardly stopped the engineer from appearing on Tuesday morning with coffee and scones, drawing the attention of a few people in the Village when he landed delicately in front of the Sanctum. The doors had opened to accept him in before a crowd could gather, but that did little to change the rather embarrassed (but pleased) look he got from the sorcerer over their impromptu breakfast.  
  
While Tony had meetings of his own to deal with that day, the pair exchanged a series of texts while the brunette was away. He popped in a little after lunch for about an hour, keeping the master of the Sanctum company as Stephen sorted through some of his books in the library. The two shared a light, casual banter interspersed with a few soft, lingering touches before Tony’s business commitments drew him away again.  
  
It was his own fault, of course. In an effort to make sure Thursday was entirely free of obligations Tony had reorganized his entire schedule, getting meetings out of the way, attending to issues as quickly as he could, and passing off those he couldn’t deal with to the appropriate individuals.

Similarly Stephen had kept himself busy with the several tasks he knew he needed to get accomplished so that there would be as little likelihood of being called away as possible. While he had less to deal with on the side of business, he had students to deal with as well as a couple of meetings with the Masters of the Mystics Arts to assess certain global irregularities in the field of magic.  
  
On Wednesday night the sorcerer hesitated as he lay in bed taking his time to slowly and meticulously type out a text to Tony (a struggle with his hands trembling and his phone screen as small as it was) before relaxing and playing with the ring that had settled into the hollow of his throat. Pressing send with an embarrassed smile to himself, he set his phone on the nightstand and rolled onto his side to cuddle into his pillows.  
  
“S: I look forward to seeing you tomorrow. Sweet dreams.”

“T: Already asleep, dreaming of you. XOXO”

* * *

Unlike their last date Tony had gone to lengths to doll himself up this time and just as Stephen had projected, he took about an hour or more in the washroom preparing for their date. A perfectly manicured beard and mustache, neatly trimmed hair and Tony even debated going so far as to put a very light lip chap on - and then quickly dismissed the idea.  
  
Sure, Tony Stark was a diva, but he wasn’t a queen.  
  
He did up the buttons of his shirt with care, tucking his pin-stripe white dress shirt into the lip of his pants. He slipped on a simple black belt and then to finish it all off put on a black cardigan and a deep maroon tie, tucking it under the single button fold of the fine outer garment. He almost looked like a waiter at a fancy restaurant, ready for _service_ \- and in a sense he was going out of his way to serve his special someone a good night.  
  
He spent moments staring at himself in the mirror like a peacock, twisting and turning as he inspected that his outfit both matched and looked good on him. Each piece of clothing had been tailored to his form, and the deep black fabric of the cardigan only complimented his petite yet defined figure.

Confidently, he looked at his own face, clicked his tongue and winked at himself.  
  
“How do I look?”  
  
“You look very handsome Mr. Stark, you’re going to kill someone tonight - but you may have forgotten your makeup.”  
  
“... Makeup?” Tony was confused.  
  
“Yes sir, shall I call Dum-E up to help with your oil streak?”  
  
“Haw, haw very funny Fri.” Tony stopped and looked around making sure everything was in check.  
  
“Take out is…?”  
  
“Ordered sir, It will be arriving in half an hour.”  
  
“And-”  
  
“Everything is set up and ready to go with the entertainment system.”  
  
“Thanks Fri.”  
  
“My pleasure Mr. Stark.”  
  
He reached into the pockets of his pants feeling around for a couple of plastic packets which he didn’t bother pulling out to check. Everything was mostly prepared, now he just needed to wait for his personal house-call.

There were three succinct knocks on the door and Friday immediately let Stephen in.  
  
“Good evening Doctor, Tony is still fussing with his outfit.” At the mention of Stephen’s name Tony came bolting around the corner rather flustered. He’d only needed one more moment to finish off!  
  
“Fri you were supposed to tell me when he arrived so I could let him in!”  
  
“I _did_ tell you he was here!”  
  
Tony rolled his eyes, approaching Stephen - eyes immediately noticing the crimson cloak (a nice touch!) then that Stephen was wearing both the ring and one of the shirts he’d gotten him. The man’s pants were clearly a little too tight around the sorcerer’s thighs, but to his credit the black of his pants matched his socks and his loafers, leaving the man looking really well put together.

“Good evening, Friday,” Stephen greeted cheerfully, watching as Tony skidded around the corner and offering his boyfriend a bright smile. “It’s an absolute pleasure to see you again too, Tony. Look at you…” He tsked softly, shaking his head. “I’m clearly _underdressed_ for this date, you look _gorgeous_.”

Tony was still checking out his date, rather impressed at how well Stephen’s clothing both fit and complimented him - _under dressed my ass…_

“Oh this? This is nothing… I feel like I owe it to you after the _last_ date. It’s nice to see you, Steph.” Rather than having something flirty and suggestive, his stomach had tightened in adoration as he noticed all the sweet little details of Stephen’s outfit. It meant the world to him that Stephen was wearing the chain and ring he’d made him, and then again that he’d put on one of the (many) dress shirts he’d purchased for Stephen (himself) as well.  
  
Tony walked up to Stephen placing his hands on either side of Stephen’s shoulders, leaning in to give him a hearty kiss on the lips, which the other returned easily. He gave Stephen a lopsided grin as he received his own kiss, leaning into the sorcerer’s chest.

 _God that felt nice._  
  
“I like the coat! It’s a nice touch.” He commented as he ran his hands up and down the fabric of his arms in a fond caress. He then curiously tugged at it’s collar. “Here, let me get your coat for you.” He attempted to slide it off of his shoulders for him.  
  
Stephen had started to curl his arms around Tony’s waist before the man began to tug at the collar - and the collar pet his hand in return. Pulling his arms back the sorcerer allowed the cloak to shift itself off of him to greet Tony of its own accord, happily showing off its form and flaring widely in pleasure at the praise. Tony was a little startled when the cloak batted at the back of his hand playfully and just as quickly slipped off of Stephen’s shoulders to flail and dance in the air.  
  
“I think the cloak will be able to handle itself…” Stephen laughed a bit. “It didn’t want to be left behind. So it showed me a new trick.”  
  
“I need to get me one of those.” Referring to the cloak, he turned his attention back to Stephen, running his hands over the man’s slim waist to feel at the contours of that body beneath the folds of his white dress shirt.

“Forget about me, look at you! I’m just going to just cancel delivery and have you for dinner - you’re a real piece for the eyes.” The engineer cackled and finally stepped back, but kept a single arm around him as he led him out of the doorway.  
  
“Don’t you think we might be rushing it introducing a third into our relationship Steph?” He winked over at the cloak.

Slipping out of his shoes next, Stephen wrapped his arms around Tony once the cloak was freely meandering.

“I didn’t mind how you looked on our last date either. I told you messy looks good on you. Apparently dressed to the nines also looks good on you. So I’m going to have to just start assuming that it’s less the clothing and more just that _you_ look incredible.”  
  
Upon being acknowledged, the cloak excitedly swirled around once more before settling itself over Tony’s shoulders and wrapping its sleeves around Tony from behind in return. Its collar bounced and twitched in expressive joy, pleased to be included.  
  
“The cloak seems content to share,” Stephen observed as he allowed Tony to guide him further into the apartment, leaving one arm likewise lingering around Tony’s waist as they walked. “And it was here first. So _really_ the one who’s newly introduced into this relationship was _you_ wasn’t it?” He teased in return, happily basking in Tony’s flattery.

“This whole time you’ve been cheating on me?” The engineer gasped in mock surprise. There was a heavy hint of amusement to his voice as Stephen mentioned the cloak’s involvement in his life.

“Cheating? Tony I told you before we started dating that the cloak and I are a thing.” Stephen teased in return, chuckling softly. “If you didn’t pick up the hint, I think that one’s on _you_ , pillbug.”

There was something very different and unexpected about a sentient piece of clothing giving you a ‘hug’ from behind. Tony wasn’t sure he’d expected that kind of response from the crimson garb but he reached up with his free hand and gave the thing a gentle pat on the collar all the same.  
  
“I can pull off any look if it’s _for you._ ” He quirked his brows playfully, leading them into the main living-room of his apartment and plopped himself down on the left side of the couch, tugging Stephen with him. He then pulled out his phone to access the panel, everything had been set up and ready to go courtesy of Friday.  
  
“So, since you didn’t want something artery clogging I figured sushi? I just got a variety of different stuff in case raw fish really isn't your forte.”  
  
Settling in beside Tony, the sorcerer easily cuddled up beside the brunette while the cloak draped itself over the back of the couch. “I’m sure I’ll be just as content with it being _pulled off_ as anything else. I’ll admit, I haven’t had sushi in a good long while, though… and now that you’ve said it, it really _does_ sound great.”

“Language, Stephen!” Tony looked sorely taken aback by the half insult Stephen had dealt to him with that verbal blow. His frame rattled with amusement as he slid his arm in around Stephen’s waist once more, leaning into the corner of the couch and one of the throw pillows to make himself a little more comfortable. It was funny to see their dynamic in the relationship especially when Tony ended up on top of things considering the significant height difference between the engineer in comparison to Stephen.

Stephen seemed confused by Tony’s admonishment, but simply let the subject slide with a half-shrug.

Tony appreciated their dynamic, considering Stephen was just a huge stuffed animal to him that he could cuddle up to. His arm around Stephen’s waist gave a little squeeze and he rested his chin up against the back of his shoulder, prodding the side of the sorcerer's neck with his nose.  
  
“I got an assortment, plus some sides of tempura and short ribs, rice a few other things just to be on the safe side.” He muffled into the fabric of Stephen’s button-up. ”I also didn’t want to risk it with Wong’s taste buds so I just had Fri send over some southern barbecue.” His fingers softly curled into the fabric of Stephen’s shirt.  
  
“I _am_ a big fan of tempura so you’ve definitely got me there. And Wong’s plenty fond of barbecue. I thought you were going the fast-food route, but you’re going to wind up making Wong a _very_ big fan of yours at this rate.”

“That works in both our favours, because then that means it will be easier to persuade him to watch the sanctum while I whisk you away from your responsibilities. Heroes are allowed to have lives too.” Tony purred softly, wrapping his other arm around Stephen’s waist and pulling him into his lap.  
  
“I’d honestly like to see Wong try to get through the portion of food I ordered for him, there should be enough that there’s leftovers.” He paused his harassment.

“Are you trying to bribe my friend with food?” Stephen laughed softly, shuffling over to settle himself in Tony’s lap and draping his arms over the other’s shoulders. “Because that’s probably not the worst idea. Food is one of those things that’s always appreciated in the Sanctum.”

“Yes, actually - and I imagined you wouldn’t have a problem with that since this benefits the both of us.” The brunette cackled at the desired response he’d manage to draw out of Stephen from the surprise.

Offering Tony a small smile, Stephen relaxed back into the couch to cast a curious look at the television.  
  
“So what are we watching this fine evening?”

“I figure we could watch Sherlock Holmes, Rhodey’s been going on and on about the third movie - I had no idea what he was talking about and then he chastised me and called me ‘crazy not to have seen this movie’. I figured we could watch it together. You know, if it’s bad then we can share the suffering.” He took the opportunity to sneak a kiss on the taller man’s neck, _and maybe a gentle little bite too_ .  
  
The kiss to his neck left the sorcerer to smile a bit to himself - the nip, on the other hand, drew a soft noise of surprise. His eyes focused in on the brunette briefly before he pressed a gentle kiss to the top of Tony’s head, burying his nose there and brushing fingers through the other’s hair fondly.  
  
“Hm… Sherlock Holmes sounds fun. There was a resurgence of interest in the character a little while back wasn’t there? I used to read the books when I was a kid, but I was too busy to see the movies when they came out.”

He felt shivers run down his back at the sensation of Stephen’s shaky fingers knit into his hair. Those digits coursing over his scalp and the addition of the kiss had him melting right on the spot. His hand gently ran over Stephen’s thigh, caressing the side of his pant leg as he kept one arm still resting around his midsection.  
  
“I don’t think I ever got a chance to read the books, so at least I get the sparks notes via the movie. That’s how it works, right?” He murmured, and while Stephen was pressing his face into his hair he went ahead and started returning the favour, peppering Stephen’s collarbone with small kisses.

“That depends on how accurate the movie is.” Stephen said, speaking quietly into the soft locks crowning Tony’s head.

“Boss, the courier is pulling into the compound's driveway.”  
  
Tony groaned audibly. _That meant he had to get up and move._  
  
As Friday spoke Stephen’s nose removed itself from Tony’s hair to look up towards the ambient voice despite being fully aware that there wasn’t really a place to look. A heavy sigh fled the sorcerer as Tony groaned and realization sunk in.

“Yeah, let him in. Tell him I’ll be down in a minute.”  
  
“I don’t suppose it’s already paid for and I can just send the cloak to fetch it rather than either of us having to move?”

“No, but I have an idea.” Tony kept a hand around Stephen’s waist while he dug into his pocket for his wallet, he managed to pull it out with one hand and _thankfully_ procured a one-hundred dollar bill. “Jeez I can’t remember the last time I paid for something in cash.” He laughed and handed the bill towards the cloak.

“Give him that, Fri tell him he can keep the change. Friday will guide you to the main lobby and open up the doors for you - just try not to scare the courier off, I can’t imagine he’s used to seeing many flying cloaks around, even if this is the compound.” Tony smiled and nodded towards the door.  
  
The corner of the red fabric came down to grab the bill from Tony’s hand before it whipped off through the apartment door as it was opened up.  
  
“Oh, and Fri - warn the poor guy or gal. I’m hungry, I don’t want them freaking out and running off with the food.” He chuckled, having craned his neck to look over the lip of the couch.  
  
“You’ve got it boss.”  
  
“Thanks babe.”  
  
“Well, that’s rather handy.” He turned his attention back to Stephen, awkwardly shoving his wallet back into his pocket with full attention on the man in his lap. “I gotta get me one of those.” He propped his chin up on Stephen’s collarbone, looking up at him from his chest.

Stephen seemed perfectly happy to watch after the cloak as it disappeared, smiling cheerfully after the fabric before offering Tony an amused look.  
  
"Well now. That was a good bit of teamwork then wasn't it?" The sorcerer leaned to press a kiss to Tony's forehead, relaxing in his place again now that everything seemed taken care of. "But you can't have it. That cloak is one of a kind and it's mine - for better or for worse."  
  
Stephen sighed softly to himself, shaking his head with a smile. "Would you be satisfied with a kiss instead?"

Tony frowned in a mock pout, but nodded compliantly regardless. He tilted Stephen down so that all of his support would be on Tony’s side of things - there wasn’t any hesitation as the brunette leaned the sorcerer down putting his face mere centimeters away from the other's.  
  
“A kiss will suffice for now _I guess_ . But that won’t stop me from pestering you about this in the future.” He teased as he pressed his nose up against Stephen’s and as he finished speaking. He then leaned in and stole the sorcerer’s lips with his own. This was a much deeper and bolder kiss than the last time, completely enveloping the other man’s lips and forcing his tongue into Stephen’s mouth unexpectedly.

Stephen might have started to respond but whatever he had to say was lost to the assault of the other's mouth, leaving the words to simply shift into a stifled surprised noise and Tony gave an answering groan, getting a good taste of the man while one of his hands was intrepid enough to slide under Stephen’s shirt, riding it up a bit in order to palm at his bare back. He relished in the feel of the other’s body against his, supple lips flushed against one-another and the tickle of their beards grazing against each other.  
  
Shaky fingers curled into short brown locks of hair and Tony had him nearly down against the cushions of the sofa just as soon with that thought.

He leaned over Stephen’s body with a knee at the side of his legs as he used the cushion as leverage to twist and turn his head to deepen the kiss. Not needing to hold Stephen aloft any longer, his hand was not-so-lightly frisking the side of his thigh now.  
  
His eyes shut as he took in Stephen’s taste and scent wholly, the soft smacking of their lips locked and then aggressively breaking contact only to reunite with the passion of the moment was the only sound that filled the air.

That and Tony’s soft groans that habitually escaped.  
  
The door popped open a moment later and the cloak came in with their take-out and Tony’s eyes fluttered open softly as he finally pulled away.  
  
“Sorry, I was getting really _hungry._ ” He murmured with a low husky voice.

Stephen’s cheeks were on the flush side when he eventually opened his eyes again, giving Tony a perfectly affectionate look from his new spot. A small smile had donned his features though his lips were still slightly parted as he took a few deep breaths and his fingers trailed over the back of Tony’s neck and slid lightly over the other’s shoulder.  
  
“Mmm… I was getting that impression. I suppose I _did_ show up in a red cloak, I should’ve expected to be gobbled up.” He teased quietly, his voice similarly low in the space between them.

“I’m not done yet, trust me this isn’t something I plan to sate with food alone.” He teased with a wry smile and bumped the bridge of his nose against Stephen’s affectionately. He drank in the image of Stephen prone and on his back, sheepish and subdued from that very forward display.  
  
There may have been a little hesitation when he retracted himself from the the sorcerer, although that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t have Stephen back in the same situation later on. His hand slid out of his shirt, and the other on his thigh moved to brush the backs of his knuckles over the other’s cheek before offering a hand up from his recumbent position.

“Well that’s a relief, I was rather enjoying myself.” Stephen sighed as he took Tony’s hand to sit up, his smile remaining fixed in place as he settled into a less reclined position once again.

The cloak slunk back over the back of the couch as it returned and Friday immediately set the movie to play and dimmed the lights some once Tony had sat up. He unfolded the brown paper take-out bag and started laying the multitude of styrofoam take-out crates along the coffee table in front of them, picking up a pair of chopsticks and handing them over to Stephen. Watching Tony work for a couple of moments Stephen hesitated as he looked at the offered chopsticks with a bit of uncertainty.  
  
“I… actually can’t use chopsticks. Sushi’s been a bit of a finger food ordeal for me of late… I hope you don’t mind too much…?”

“That’s right, I’m an idiot.” Tony laughed nervously feeling rather sheepish at his lapse in judgement. He tossed the chopsticks down on the table and just handed Stephen a napkin instead.

"You are _very_ far from an idiot, it's just a matter of getting used to changes. It took me a long while to get used to things I could or could not do - I don't expect you to have it all figured out yet." Stephen offered a reassuring smile as he took the napkin at least, glancing up at some of the movement on the screen before refocusing on the variety of sushi available.

“I have to say, always been a huge fan of butterfish and salmon.” Tony opened one of the plastic crates that contained the usual fake grass, wasabi and ginger combination with the various assortment of colourful looking fish slices. He picked up one of the white pieces of fish and held it up with his chopsticks, offering to feed it to the sorcerer.  
  
Despite there being a movie playing Tony paid more attention to Stephen and their food than he did to the massive screen in front of them.

Looking at the proffered sashimi thoughtfully, Stephen finally opened his mouth and leaned in to eat the fish. As its name suggested the fish had a rather fatty, buttery texture that Tony found perfectly enjoyable and as Stephen offered Tony a small smile, the engineer took the nod he received as approval.  
  
“That’s quite nice, thank you.” Stephen murmured, peeking through a few things before finding a piece of sashimi that was red on one end and white on the other - hokkigai. Plucking it from its safe spot amidst the many varied types of sushi on display, Stephen took very little time in popping that into his mouth next with a contented noise.

“Considering I usually don’t have myself figured out most of the time.” Tony half smiled and pulled his chopsticks away once Stephen had taken the piece from him. He went to retrieve the same breed of fish for himself, dipped it in soy sauce and then just as easily devoured the small cut of meat.  
  
“I could honestly eat this stuff all day - though can’t say fish roe is anything I was really too crazy about.” He absently prodded at some of the sashimi rolls bearing crowns of orange roe on the tops. “Last time I ordered sushi for the gang, Clint couldn’t get enough of the stuff - meanwhile, I’ll tolerate it...” He nibbled away at another piece of raw salmon he’d garnished with a small hint of wasabi and soy.  
  
The brunette narrowed his eyes as he looked around for something in the bags, lighting up as he found two smaller, round styrofoam bowls. He divided the two up between them; small containers filled with Miso soup.  
  
“Now this, this is my jam.” He popped the lids off of the containers for the both of them and just as soon picked up his own to start sipping at the soup.

“I hope by ‘this stuff’ you mean sushi in general, because butterfish isn’t particularly good for human consumption.” With Tony expressing a mild disinterest in the roe, Stephen smiled a little to himself.

“I like roe well enough. I prefer salmon roe to smelt roe but I’m not terribly picky, so if you’re not interested I’ll happily finish off whatever you don’t like.” Continuing to slowly work at the sushi, Stephen’s gaze flitted up towards the screen again as his lips twisted in amusement at the antics on screen.

“Well you could argue that about most of the foods we eat nowadays, and a lot of what people do in general. When was the last time you got that ol’ Sanctum checked to see if there was asbestos in the ceiling? That place could be a ticking time bomb you know, but hey! Most of us do it anyways.” Tony’s example was horribly lacking in tact but there was some merit to his argument.  
  
“I guess it’s just something about how it’s fish eggs… and they pop in your mouth when you chew on them, and they are small.” He shuddered. Tony then gently nudged all the pieces of sashimi with fish roe over to Stephen’s side of the coffee table. He was more than content to sip at his soup and eat the _non-contaminated pieces_.

" _Most foods we eat_ haven't been banned by the FDA, prohibited in Japan, and labeled with warnings in Denmark and Sweden." Stephen shrugged. "But it's simply a matter of moderation, which is why the FDA lifted the ban in '92. A little bit is fine. It's excess that can cause problems. As for the Sanctum... I feel like you've misunderstood how the building functions. If it's a ticking time bomb it's because of the deep roots of magic that converge there, not because of _asbestos_ ."  
  
A smile twitched across his face as he watched Tony shuffled the sashimi over towards him.

"The texture and the way they go _pop_ is kind of why I like them...? Especially the salmon roe... briny but a little sweet. It's like the food equivalent of playing with bubble wrap to me."  
  
“I can do briny, I can’t deal with the idea that it’s fish eggs, and _there’s so many of them_. The taste doesn’t bother me but the idea of it does - mostly.” He shuddered at the idea of a mouthful of fish roe. He settled for simply finishing off his miso soup and picking at some of the barbecue short ribs.

“Right, so no roe for Tony. That’s what I’ve learned from this exchange. Is that what I’m supposed to have taken from all that?” Stephen made his comfort with eating fish eggs clear as he quickly finished up a couple more pieces, watching Tony with clear amusement on his features.

“What needs to be in moderation is that Sanctum, you aren’t visiting enough - an excuse for getting some fresh-air every once in a while.” Tony could have practically fallen asleep through _most_ of that explanation but he was honestly just prodding Stephen in good fun.

“All facts aside, we don’t see each other enough, I’ve really grown fond of you.” His voice was much quieter and he chewed on the outer meat of one of the ribs, poking around the tray with his chopsticks.

“I’m plenty fond of you too. But I have a lot of things I need to do. I can’t just drop everything to come and visit all the time. I’d love to have more time together but I figured with the Avengers and Stark Industries to balance you’d kind of understand where I’m coming from.”

“I figured it would be less of one visiting the other, and more of _us_ needing to make time for _each other_ in general.” Tony smiled softly, chucking the bone of his short rib into the head of the styrofoam tray before grabbing another piece of short rib and chewing the meat off of the bone.  
  
His eyes drifted over to the screen in front of them, distracted from the movie as he let the silence between them sink in. Tony felt so soft, so warmed by the other’s admission even though it was something he was already aware of. Stephen had assured him time and time again the feelings were mutual but that didn’t stop those feelings from bleeding through regardless.  
  
“I know you do the best you can Steph, I’m just thinking out loud.” Another bone went into the tray and flopped back down against the back of the couch staring at the television screen in front of them. “If only saving the world didn’t take so much from our personal lives.”

Stephen hesitated as he followed Tony’s gaze to the television, leaning back into the couch cushions. He made no efforts to pick up any further sushi, nor did he touch the miso or ribs, staring rather vacantly at the screen in silence.  
  
“How much time do you _want_?” Stephen finally inquired quietly.

“Just more of it, I couldn’t say definitely how much...” He trailed off. Frankly he was caught off guard by the question. Usually any other person would respond with some sort of agreement rather than a definitive answer. Quantifying the amount of time he demanded made things… awkward. It felt almost like the ball was in his court - like Stephen was asking for an answer to fix a problem he himself personally didn’t have the solution for.  
  
Sure, he could rearrange business meetings on his end, move other menial endeavors around to at least squeeze in 15 minutes at the very least to see the sorcerer. Honestly he’d be content if Stephen just popped in for a moment, pecked him on the cheek and disappeared!  
  
But it was hard to put that kind of thing into words. He was starting to realize just how literal Stephen was about everything and he felt that as soon as he set a definite number, that the other could either agree or disagree to, and that would cause problems due to negotiations.  
  
That wasn’t the point.  
  
He just wanted the other to keep in mind and squeeze in moments wherever he could.  
  
“You know… if you ever find the time just text me or pop in, even if it’s for a few minutes. I’d do the same if I could manage the distance.” He trailed off, prodding at a piece of fish idly.

“It takes me an obnoxiously long time to write even a short text message out and I’m not going to just show up unannounced,” Stephen responded, his voice still quiet and measured, though he didn’t shift from watching the television as he spoke. Climbing to his feet the sorcerer made his way to the kitchen sink to wash his hands in silence.

Once he returned, hands cleaned and dried, Stephen sat again and settled his hands in his lap whilst watching Tony.

“I’ll try. All I can promise is that I’ll make an effort. I said we’d make this work… and I’ll hold to that.”

“If you’re worried about interrupting something, I could hook you up with my schedule. I don’t think anything would make me happier than an unexpected visit with in-between meetings or in those short free periods.” He trailed off softly. “It would mean the world to me.”  
  
Tony had to mask the little bit of despair. It almost felt like pulling teeth to make arrangements with Stephen - he led such a busy life, the time incompatibility made it difficult. Perhaps he was asking for too much? Overstepping his bounds when they had just freshly walked into this relationship.  
  
He knew more than anyone that you couldn’t change people, no one could be told to change - but they could be inspired to change of their own accord. Was he demanding too much? Pepper tried so many times to do just that, but when she’d had enough of his professional life bleeding over into his personal life, that’s when their relationship crumbled.  
  
Maybe he was being paranoid? But he was starting to draw parallels between the two, except he felt like he was in Pepper’s position, getting a dose of his own medicine for once. They both had professional obligations and even if most of Tony’s could be moved or put on hold that didn’t necessarily mean Stephen’s could be.  
  
“And believe me if it was as easy as portalling over to see you I’d do the same instead.” He set his chopsticks down and likewise leaned back against the couch, eyes fixed on the movie. He was watching it, although his mind was definitely not paying too much attention to it. His head was so muddled with personal scrutiny on the matter - it made him wonder if he was capable of holding a relationship with someone even when he wanted it to work out or if habit would lead it to ruin like the last.

“I have an idea. With that said, the last time I showed someone this she panicked and thought I’d died. It’s not an emergency right now, we have time… so it feels right to at least take the time and opportunity to explain this to you before I actually _show_ you.” Stephen shifted in his spot, turning to face Tony and reaching out to take one of Tony’s hands, clearly anxious.

Tony was jostled from his snowballing thoughts as he felt the warmth of Stephen’s hand envelop his own - in return, he rotated his own to lace his fingers through the other’s shaky digits and lightly squeezed. It settled his nerves some, and at the proposition of a new idea his interest was piqued.

“Astral projection - I can only imagine you’ve heard of it in some respect, but even if you have it may not be exactly as you’ve heard of it. It would allow me to leave my physical body in one location to visit you in another in an astral form. It means I could quickly snap back if needed, and I could arrive quietly and unseen to check whether you’re free or not. If you were and I only had a short amount of time, we could chat for a short period, or if it turned out you were free for longer I could return to my body and come visit.”  
  
The sorcerer paused briefly, chewing his lip a little. “My concern is mostly in violating your privacy. The last thing I want is for you to feel like you’re being observed by something you can’t see… and admittedly, that might be the case on occasion even if all I’d mean to do is check in and see if you’re free. But if you’re okay with unexpected visits then…”

Tony had immediately snapped his attention over to Stephen’s face, leaning in a little closer and listening to him. He had a meek smile on his face as Stephen was so worried about _violating his privacy_ . There wasn’t anything private about Tony Stark’s life, even to the man he held so near and dear.  
  
“There’s no possible privacy you could be violating; I’m giving you explicit permission to violate it even if there is. There’s nothing I don’t do now that you wouldn’t be aware of unless you plan to take the ‘secrets’ of my company and sell them, which I doubt you will or are even capable of because Stark Industries has _so many secrets._ ” He teased lightly leaning his shoulder into the sorcerer’s.  
  
“But go on and show me this trick of yours, I promise the first thing I think of won’t be that you’ve died.” Tony made light of the warning when really he had absolutely no idea what to expect Stephen to do. He didn’t know what the other was talking about, or what he meant. He wholly expected Stephen to do some trick of the mind with him, project himself into his conscience or something. Maybe rattled some furniture around, drop something off a table to spook him.  
  
Tony’s mind was anything but fantastical.

“Well for one thing you should be careful the kind of free reign you give to a sorcerer. We’re capable of doing a lot of things and for someone with as little privacy as you have… I don’t want to overstep.” Stephen offered a smile and shifted in his seat, not releasing Tony’s hand but laying himself down to prevent the collapse of his body.  
  
“Peter once thought he’d trick me by asking me what number he was thinking of. He was thinking of pancakes - and he was _very_ excited by my knowing that. Very superficial mindreading there and unless it was an emergency I’d never push deeper than that. Even the superficial stuff feels… intrusive. But _this_ isn’t the same as _that_ by any stretch of the imagination.”  
  
Pressing a soft kiss to Tony’s fingers, Stephen rested their hands over his chest and rested his head in Tony’s lap. Taking a couple of deep breaths to calm himself and focus, his body slowly sagged and relaxed in its place.

“Honestly Steph, what’s the worst that could happen asides from you catching me naked or likewise in the middle of a bath. I trust you enough not to take whatever’s in my head and use it against me too if we’re talking about mind-reading.” He teased and he watched as the man tentatively curled up and relaxed against his legs.  
  
He placed his other free hand atop Stephen’s forehead, brushing the bangs tenderly out of his face as the sorcerer’s eyes shut to meditate.

When he saw Stephen’s ethereal form he felt his heart almost stop for a second, then race dramatically. He’d been warned - but he couldn’t help but almost startle at the sight of the man’s astral form hovering in front of him.  
  
“You know you make a very attractive ghost - you could haunt me any day.” Shrugging off his momentary daze from the new experience, he teased Stephen - tilting his head to the right to look through him, raising a hand to try and touch him as well. He wasn’t sure if his hand would travel through Stephen or hit some sort of resistance in the process.

“I’m not a ghost.” Stephen said rather plainly, as he watched the other’s hand pass through him. “But I’m definitely not tangible the way you might think. I can’t simply pass through walls easily - it’s a little more like trying to wade through water. Barriers are _there_ but not the same as they would be to my corporeal form.”

“So you can just… do this at will…?” He looked down at the man who was seemingly asleep in his lap, then back up at the apparition in front of him.  
  
The sorcerer’s smile didn’t fade as he pulled his legs up to sit cross-legged in the air, shrugging a little.

“I suppose so, yes. If I were sitting upright or standing I’d have a higher likelihood of my body collapsing when I did this - otherwise it would require that I was meditating appropriately. But it gives me the opportunity to allow my body to sleep without sacrificing time out of my day for actually sleeping…” His nose wrinkled slightly. “Not the best idea, sometimes the rest of me needs to rest too, but when I’m studying or working on things it’s easy enough to put my body to sleep and then resume my tasks like this.”  
  
Looking around for a moment, Stephen took some time to focus before lifting a small pillow slightly. It wavered unsteadily in his hands before he set it down again. “I can interact to a _small_ degree with inanimate objects in the surrounding areas, but that requires a good deal more focus. Still, if it’s for something as small as wishing you a good night… I can do that without having to leave my post, or interrupt what little sleep I _do_ get. I realize it wouldn’t be the same as being able to actually come and see you, but I hope it’s at least an acceptable substitute for a text?”

“I’d rather have some of you than none of you. I think I'd be set if I got to at least _see_ you before I went to sleep each night...” He responded as if there was no doubt to that question. “And I can appreciate the thought that would go into it - man, what I wouldn’t give to be able to go without sleeping and not feel the after effects of exhaustion, I feel like you got the get-out-of-jail-free card!” Tony waved his hand again through Stephen’s astral form a few times, just for good measure.  
  
It was silly but he’d do it anyways, _because Tony Stark was 12._

“It’s not exactly ‘without sleep’ and I do have to break up some of those times with legitimate sleep as well. As I said, this only allows my _body_ to rest. If I were connected to an EEG you’d see clearly that my brain was not in a sleep-state - and your brain requires rest as well.” Stephen sighed a little. “It’s easy to run myself ragged or wind up feeling out of sorts if I go on full marathons of projecting rather than sleeping.”

“So… can you feel anything in your main body if you’re out of your body like that?” Tony asked curiously, there was a minor impish hint to his voice as he asked that, slowly stroking his fingers through Stephen’s hair idly.  
  
Watching Tony’s fingers settle in his hair, Stephen smiled and nodded.

“I can. Not as strongly as usual, but I can hear and feel things going on around me still. My physical body is at some risk when I’m away from it - but within the Sanctum it should be relatively secure.”

“Soooo can you feel this then?” He leaned over after making brief eye-contact with the projection, planting his lips on Stephen’s neck and gently sucking at the skin as he hovered over the vacant body in his lap. His mouth lingered there drawing in the other man’s skin a few times and leaving a small mark before he sat back up and looked up at Stephen again with a shit-eating-grin on his face.  
  
Tony’s hand came to rest over the sorcerer’s neck, rubbing gently and ghosting over the back of it. He dragged his nails through the fine hairs on the back of his neck with a wide smile.

“... I should’ve known there was no noble purpose behind that question.” Stephen responded suspiciously, quickly and quietly, his hand moving to the spot on his neck that very much felt Tony’s touch. “And that’s _not fair_ in the slightest.” His expression spoke volumes, however.  
  
Stephen clearly wasn’t upset.

His eyes were rather focused on the other man, a playful smile on his features.

“But if you’d _rather_ make out with an unresponsive body to an active and willing participant… I _suppose_ I won’t stop you.”

“Mmmhmmm, it’s just a shame you don’t get to experience any of this _first hand_ . Though I can only imagine what it must feel like to sit and watch someone molest your body...” He purred impishly as his hand snuck under the tight white fabric of Stephen’s dress shirt, working its way up to hover over his pec. He brushed over Stephen’s teet with a thumb, lightly teasing the skin before he took it between two fingers and began to squeeze.  
  
To make matters worse he continued his lascivious teasing at Stephen’s neck, gnawing and biting playfully at the skin, up along his jugular to just behind his ear where he nudged his nose in between the tight junction. He then took the outer skin of his ear in his teeth and tugged at it, grazed his teeth along the outer circumference and then applied the flat of his tongue, groaning softly for added effect.

With a soft, slightly strained huff the sorcerer disappeared for a moment. Taking up his own body once more and with his arms capable of contact again, Stephen wrapped his them around Tony to hold pull him in closer, tilting his head to the side to provide as much access to his neck as Tony wanted.  
  
“This… feels _much_ better.”

“I didn’t think you'd last long without getting in on the action.” It seemed that their prior engagement of watching the movie had been forgotten and banished to meager background noise.

Tony was fully absorbed in getting in as much physical contact as he could with the other and as Stephen wrapped an arm around his head unexpectedly, he let out a surprised groan. He only lifted from his frenzy for a moment as he spoke under his breath with a devilish tease.  
  
“You remember why I bought this shirt for you, right?” He didn’t even wait for Stephen to answer before he planted his lips down against the underside of Stephen’s chin, gorging on the man’s prickly, stubbled flesh as he snapped the buttons off his shirt and tore the front open.

“If I’m getting something I want I’d definitely prefer to _enjoy_ it to simply _observing_ ,” Stephen murmured quietly, and as the shirt was torn open, a little laugh caught in his throat. “Of course I remember… why do you think I wore it?” The sorcerer’s tone was full of heat and mirth, a soft moan of pleasure emitting from his throat under Tony’s versatile hands and mouth.

As his palms moved to push the open folds of the shirt open and place themselves on either side of his sculpted torso. His hands brushed over his front, grabbing hold of his pectorals abrasively.

With the doctor’s front exposed Tony took a moment to fully appreciate the man’s figure from the presence of a familiar chain and ring he’d previously gifted Stephen - a gesture that meant so much to him, and yet he doubted Stephen knew - to an unfamiliar vertical scar over Stephen’s heart.

Despite his lust-driven flurry, Tony took the time to delicately drag two fingers over the long-healed wound. Head tilted as his mind venture a guess at what could have possibly happened there.

Though, that would be a question for another time.  
  
Naturally, Tony had managed to fancy himself up enough to be a bit of a pain in the ass to try and undress - layers, a belt and a tie - but it didn’t stop Stephen’s hands from popping the single button of the man’s cardigan before working their way down to find some kind of entrance into the other’s top.

Continuing as if Stephen’s fussing with his outfit was barely noticeable Tony crushed his body down against Stephen’s, kneading their forms together as he brought his mouth over to the opening of his ear.  
  
_He blew gently._  
  
“God I’ve fucking waited too long for this - I’m sorry, dinner just wasn’t enough.” He exhaled under his tongue. There was no missing the intent in the direction Tony was taking things, his smaller but physically more stout form easily kept Stephen underneath him as one of his hands planted squarely on his crotch and palmed the fabric of his pants.

“So that’s how it’s gonna be, is it? You’ve waited long enough?”

The sorcerer shifted only slightly beneath the other, hooking a leg up over Tony's hip for leverage. His hands curled firmly in place and a slightly surprised groan slipped out of him as Tony's hand settled over his groin.

Tony’s mouth was back at his jugular like he was going in for the kill. Lips squarely pressed against that essential artery as he suckled on another spot above the previous one - intent on marking the sorcerer up.

His neck proved ever more sensitive to Tony's workings and the hand Stephen didn't have working at trying to get more skin against his own was still wrapped firmly in Tony's hair, definitely intent on encouraging whatever bruises and hickies Tony wanted to leave.

In response Tony’s fingers curled into the fabric and he groaned, drunk on the lust and overwhelming desire to strip his boyfriend down and claim him.

The sounds of Stephen’s noises of pleasure in his ears spurred him on and both of them reacting to one another was like an echo-chamber of wanton desire.  
  
“Long enough.” He parroted, emphasizing with another push of his palm against the fabric. He undid the button on his pants and dragged them down, using his feet to kick them to his ankles until he had Stephen in just his underwear, chest exposed just as plainly as his erection.  
  
He pulled away to get a good look at the man underneath him, despite not wanting to interrupt the series of kisses and licking on his throat, but this however was worth a picture. Stephen was roused, hot and all tousled from being roughed around by Tony against the cushions of the couch - really a sight to behold.

He looked right into Stephen’s eyes and captured his gaze.

He was beautiful.

“Good.” Stephen responded with a playful smile as Tony’s eyes found his own. “I’ve been waiting _so_ patiently…” His hand slid from Tony’s hair to the back of his neck, a thumb brushing along the man’s jaw with a gentle fondness.  
  
With Tony having pulled back some, Stephen’s hands came together to Tony’s front to play with his tie idly.  
  
“I don’t think you need this anymore…” He announced, divesting Tony of his shirt and cardigan (leaving the tie in place) with a quick gesture. He splayed his hands across Tony’s chest with a much happier smile.

Tony paused momentarily, surprised by the sudden exposure of his chest.  
  
“Well that’s convenient.” He joked, looking down at his bare chest, shivering as Stephen’s hands ran down his front. ”If I catch a cold, I’m blaming you.” He snickered, diving right back down to playfully take the sorcerer’s lips in his own.

”And then guess who has to nurse me back to health again?” He purred suggestively, his own pants suddenly growing a little too tight for him. He pressed himself down once again, holding himself up by one arm as he teased at the fabric of Stephen’s boxers.

“I’ll keep you warm.” Stephen said, smiling as he curled a hand into the tie and tugged at it testingly. “Just stay close.”

Tony momentarily abandoned fondling the other to place his hands delicately at Stephen’s waist. He indulged himself in the sensation of their bare chests pressed against each other, smiling softly as he went in for another kiss.  
  
Stephen’s free hand then slid around to Tony’s back as the man gave him the skin-to-skin contact he’d been so desperately craving, perfectly pleased with whatever kisses Tony saw fit to give him. His head tilted up as he locked their lips together, insistent and needy when compared to the slow, leisurely exploration of Stephen’s fingers over the engineer’s back.

His hips rocked up against Tony’s, simply enjoying the friction of their bodies.

“At least this time we don’t have some alien pheromone hopping one of us up - though I’d be curious to see how wild things could get if we did.” Tony chuckled, breaking the kiss with the smack of their lips to nudge his nose tenderly against the doctor’s. His half lidded eyes flicked from either one of Stephen’s before they closed and he went back down for yet another kiss.

“If you think it takes an alien pheromone to make things _wild_ then you’re underestimating me already.” Stephen murmured huskily, releasing the engineer’s tie to run his fingers back into the engineer’s hair. Tony had a grin that stretched from ear to ear, his stomach dipping at Stephen’s implications on how _feral_ he could get.

“You know doc, if you wanted something to grab onto I could get out the ol’ collar and leash.” He suggested playfully as his hands brushed over the sides of Stephen’s hips, his stomach rolling against that which was pressed so firmly against his.  
  
“You were practically begging for it the last time.” He cooed softly in a mild attempt to rile him up. “And I’m here to deliver.” He finally reached down, slipping a hand into the only fabric left concealing the wizard and grabbing a hold of him.  
  
He was so hard, and the engineer loved it. Knowing he could do this to the sorcerer, that this was for him - that all this time and they were finally able to engage like they hadn’t ever before despite the turbulence endured to get to this point.

As a strong, calloused hand settled around his erection, Stephen’s head dropped back against the cushions with a deep groan, eyes instinctively fluttering closed in pleasure.

“... fuck… right, I should… Uh… how… soundproofed is this place?”

His eyes flickered open for a moment as he chuckled softly at the other’s concern.  
  
“What, you don’t want the other Avengers to know just how much of a screamer you are?” Tony almost feigned hurt. “You know I live for that, right?”

“...No one can hear us, the walls are both sound and blast-proof for _obvious_ reasons. Unless Vis plans on paying us a short visit, which hopefully he doesn’t - then no. No one will hear _the great Stephen Strange_ howling at the top of his lungs. If that’s what you’re worried about.” His thumb ran over the head of the Stephen’s cock as his palm dragged up it’s length in a slow tease.  
  
He gave Stephen another loving kiss on his lips, reluctantly pulling away from him to retrieve the small bottle and condom he’d slipped into his pocket earlier.

On his knees, straddling his legs, Tony put the small rubber in his teeth as he got down to business. Procuring the bottle and then unsheathing himself from his own pants.  
  
Now that his shirt was off, his reactor served as a handy little light that softly illuminated the room. He pushed both his pants and underwear down and then proceeded to fumble with the packet.

“I like the tie… but if you’re really feeling that leash and collar I’m _not opposed in the slightest_.” Stephen sighed softly in relief. That didn’t stop the slightly indignant blush from spreading across his face in the low light as Tony rather blatantly called him out.

“I’d rather not be _that guy_ who shows up, disruptive to everyone in the vicinity, that’s all. And maybe a little bit about my dignity and general desire for professionalism.”  
  
With Tony settled over his legs, his mobility was mildly hindered, but it didn’t stop him from rocking his hips up against his hand.

He exhaled a soft moan and adjusted just slightly to watch the engineer.

“Steph, everything about you reeks professionalism, you need to lighten up.” The brunette teased with an exhaled breath. He had warmed himself up enough and then tore open the condom, rolling it down before grabbing the bottle of lube and applied it for _extra care_ .  
  
“I mean, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if the entire compound knew what was going on but hey - that’s just me...” Tony trailed off. He coated a couple fingers, squirting the small bottle as he reached down whilst maintaining eye-contact, and proceeded to push past the tightly knit muscle.  
  
“Just a heads up, you’re in for a _bumpy_ ride.” He chortled softly, pushing in to his knuckles and coating the inside of him with the slick substance.

Half-lidded eyes stayed locked on Tony’s as his fingers slid in and began to stretch out the sorcerer’s body. The noise that escaped his lips was breathy, somewhere between a laugh and a groan as he pressed back onto the man’s fingers eagerly.

“Is… that a _promise_...?”

“That’s a Stark guarantee.” Tony purred, pressing in as deep as his hand would allow, feeling around inside before he recoiled momentarily. He took in the lavish display, Stephen’s body melted into his couch, limbs weak and draped over the sides at his whim.  
  
He abrasively shoved his fingers back in, with force - there was no resistance up to his knuckle, and repeated the action - again, and again, and again. Hand on the back of the couch as he towered over him, finger-fucking the caster to get him warmed up.

The last vestiges of the sorcerer’s quiet disappeared as Stephen’s moans grew steadily louder with each thrust of Tony’s fingers. His fingers had curled into the fabric of the couch as though it would give him some kind of traction with which to establish a counter-rhythm.

It wasn’t very effective.

Instead his core tightened as his body rocked back against those fingers without restraint.

“It’s kind of been a while… so if I end up going too rough on you - you’ll let me know, right?” Despite the teasing the engineer’s voice was much more sheepish - it really had been a while since he was last with a man.

And the last thing he’d want to do was hurt Stephen.  
  
As Tony spoke again, his eyes pried themselves open, and he offered an encouraging smile.

“... ‘f you’re really concerned… I can always ride you. But if it’s too much… I’ll definitely let you know.”

“I could take my chances.” Tony thought out loud as he penetrated the sorcerer once again, roughly. “The idea of having you ride me while I fuck the living hell out of you is also really appealing as well…” He purred with another abrasive thrust before he pulled out. Strings of lubricant connecting his fingers even after withdrawal.  
  
“But then I wouldn’t have this wonderful vista from up here.” He curled his arms under Stephen’s legs and lifted him as he took his position at Stephen’s backside.  
  
“I think I’ll do some sight-seeing…” He chuckled and pushed in with his cock, having ease of access with the man already warmed up, sliding in slowly without any resistance up to his hips.

This was exactly what he had waited for, all the teasing, all the jokes, all the playing.

It was all for _this_.

And as he sunk into Stephen up until his hips, melting into putty as he leaned over the man with a dorky smile, intent on going after his lips once again.  
  
Stephen’s ankles hooked over one another as he wrapped them around Tony’s waist to hold himself as tight to the man as he could. He made a rather failed effort to stifle a deep groan as Tony slid in, his hands relinquishing their hold on the couch to allow his arms to curl tightly around Tony.  
  
“ _Finally_...” The pleased declaration slipped out of the sorcerer against the engineer’s lips.

He nipped lightly at Tony’s lower lip before running his tongue over the area soothingly - and Tony chased Stephen’s lips, kissing him repeatedly before pulling back for a hot moment.  
  
“Finally? I’m glad I could sate your hunger, madam - and in turn, you sated mine.” He teased into Stephen’s cheek, pushing his forehead into the sorcerer’s as he pulled out and gave a couple more taps to his backside.

He started slow, arms encircling the wizard’s torso as he let his jaw lay agape to exhale as he focused on the sensations of Stephen’s _very tight_ muscles clenched around him.

“Oh I am _far_ from sated just yet...” Stephen laughed breathlessly, nudging Tony’s cheek with his nose. “‘S a good start though.”

His head was swimming from the pleasure and the psychological effects that yes - this was the man he dare say he _loved_.

The man he had on his back begging for him and taking him for his own.

 _His Stephen_ whose breaths became pants as Tony began to move, soft but audible little ‘ah!’s that came unbidden each time Tony’s body connected with his own. His fingers didn’t seem to tremble even slightly in that moment, nails biting lightly into the engineer’s back, though his arms remained somewhat loose around the other to give him free range of movement.  
  
“Hanging in there, I hope? … I just can’t help myself with you.” He purred softly, picking a steady pace and closing his eyes as he thrust at an even rate into Stephen’s prone form.

“Hah?” Stephen’s pants became inquisitive for a moment as Tony spoke again. “‘M not made ‘f glass, Tony. Do what you like, I’ll let you know if s’mething’s not okay. _I promise._ ” He added quietly, pressing a short pair of kisses to the man’s cheek for reassurance. Tony’s arms squeezed Stephen's midsection, holding on for dear life as his efforts increased.  
  
When Tony began to thrust more quickly, Stephen bit down on his lip, resulting in a somewhat stifled noise. The sorcerer’s head tucked itself down against the crook of Tony’s neck the second time, muting a cry between their bodies though not _silencing_ it by a long shot.

“I was just trying to be considerate.” He barked softly in amusement. His breath hitched when he felt Stephen trying to hide his face against his neck, those mewls he tried to keep down not going unnoticed by the brunette.  
  
He rutted up Stephen’s ass, ramming his hips into that tight crease and snapping down with much more force than before. There was a sharp sound of Tony’s hips colliding with Stephen’s cheeks as he dredged deeper in order to get more of those wonderful noises out of Stephen.  
  
He laughed softly, their bodies were warm against each other, perfectly chiseled stomachs grinding against one another. He could also feel the press of the sorcerer’s own cock rubbing against his stomach.  
  
Each thrust moved their bodies, Tony’s soft grunts escaping with each forward motion as Stephen’s body slid in tandem up against the arm of the couch.

“If you want me to pick up the pace honey-bear I’m going to have to deprive you of your little hiding spot there.” He chuckled softly into the side of his head.

Stephen grumbled slightly from the place he’d tucked his face, running his nose and then his lips lightly along the column of Tony’s neck. Withdrawing to lay back against the couch again properly, Stephen rested his head against the arm of the couch at Tony’s suggestion.  
  
“More.” The sorcerer gasped out from his new spot, his eyes barely focusing on Tony effectively. The chain around his neck shifted with his movements, before the ring tumbled over the side of his neck to drop over his shoulder, leaving the simple line of gold draped loosely across his throat.

“Tony… _please_...”

“Phew it’s getting hot in here, I’m surprised you haven’t bitten down yet - wouldn’t mind a few _beauty marks of my own_ \- unless biting isn’t your thing...” He teased Stephen softly as he chased after the man’s cheek, leaning down to lovingly peck him before reverting back to his position over-top. "I'm sure you can find your own way to leave a mark.”

Stephen’s nails dug in to Tony’s back pointedly at the other’s permission, dragging down Tony’s back and over his sides, allowing his nails to bite at the skin where it would be easily hidden away from prying eyes. It wasn’t as though his nails were long or particularly sharp, but in that moment they did the trick, cutting small distinctive red lines across flesh.

He grunted as he grabbed one of Stephen’s legs and hoisted it over his shoulder. He tilted his hips upwards and straddled his other leg, jerking Stephen’s back up towards his hips.  
  
“Did you want me to make you beg for this one? Or I can do us both a favour and just cut right to the chase.” His dick throbbed anxiously, but he wasn’t impatient enough to bypass trailing some loving kisses along the shin that rested atop his shoulder. His gaze locking on Stephen’s the entire time as he trailed those soft pecks down towards his ankle.  
  
Stephen’s hands drew away as Tony adjusted their position and grey eyes finally focused properly on the engineer and Stephen offered a coquettish smile.

“By the sounds of it making me beg will deprive you _just as much_ as it deprives me… perhaps another time…?” He moved his hands to adjust the chain at his neck before moving one hand to curl loosely around his own cock.

Tony’s attention was drawn to the chain, he’d missed it in their flurry but as he had Stephen on his back, sprawled out at his whim he melted a bit on the spot, fondness drenching him like a tidal wave.  
  
“I owe you one on that account sweetheart, we’ll play games next time. Right now I want the real-deal.” He clicked his tongue and secured his right arm around that raised leg while the other wrapped around the lower part of it. Stephen’s prone, sweaty, mewling form was something that would break him if the entire motion itself didn’t.

He felt the tingles welling up in his gut before he even started up again.  
  
The engineer clutched, using the new position to dredge into the man. Pace doubled, maybe tripled as he rammed into Stephen’s backside with an unrelenting stamina. Hips thrusting roughly, slamming into him, strained groans exhaled from Tony with each collision.

Stephen’s moans rang loud and much less restrained than they had been when tucked tight and close to Tony, briefly hiccupping each time Tony’s hips connected firmly against his ass. If he was even remotely ashamed of the noises, he showed no signs, singing unabashed praises and whimpers of pleasure as his fingers twitched around his erection in loose, erratic strokes.

Tony knew exactly how hard to hit Stephen and exactly where. He continued his onslaught, grunting and moaning out hums as his eyes shut and he let slip strings of satisfied cusses under his tongue.

For a moment Stephen quieted and he seemed to stop breathing as his climax rolled over him and Tony gave the man a couple more good thrusts before he clutched onto Stephen’s leg like it was a lifeline, crumpling on top of him as he finished. His chest toppled over on Stephen’s, forehead bowed in defeat and he panted heavily, laying himself against Stephen’s core.  
  
“Fuck that was amazing… You’re amazing… Steph.” He exhaled in between breaths. Arms peeling away from his leg to let it down as they curled back around his stomach in an embrace.  
  
As Stephen weakly coaxed out the very last of his own climax, his body twitched and shuddered a bit as he slowly came down from the previous high. He took a long, deep breath, slipping his hand out of the way as Tony closed the space between them, not wanting to snare his hand.

His leg hung itself over Tony’s as the engineer relinquished his hold, nuzzling at the brunette’s forehead affectionately.

“Yeah… I _feel_ pretty amazing…” Stephen let a shaky breath space out his gravelly speech. ”I have you to thank for that, you’re really somethin’ else…”

Tony slid along his body, purposely smearing whatever mess was now between them along their stomachs. He crawled up to the sorcerer’s neck to lay his head on Stephen’s shoulder. His arms once again curled around the magus’ midsection and he basked in the afterglow, not yet having pulled out.

A quiet mewl had managed to escape the sorcerer in response to Tony’s abs rubbing against his now _entirely_ too sensitive dick.  
  
“I think I’ve found my new favourite past time with you.” Tony rumbled softly, allowing his form to melt down against the other man's body. “It’s a shame we didn’t get to finish dinner, or the movie.” Hazel eyes flicked to their poor neglected meal.

Tony had completely forgotten that the cloak was still in their presence and was almost startled when the red material surreptitiously blanketed the both of them in their little moment. The cool silken fabric of it’s underside felt nice along his bare shoulders so much so, a shiver crawled down his spine.  
  
“Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m actually feeling thoroughly satisfied appetite-wise... Aside from the movie thing. We should definitely try to rewatch again some time and _pray we don’t get just as distracted_.” At that Tony let out an amused snort. “The guy who plays Sherlock looks like you.” Stephen mumbled into Tony’s hair, eyes falling shut. “Or we could try all of this again some time - not just the movie, this whole thing. The best stay-in date I’ve ever had.”

Tony idly played with the collar of the cloak before he grabbed a handful of the fabric and tugged it closer around them. He was about to argue against Stephen at the notion of resembling the actor on screen but then stopped, tilting his head and raising himself up a bit to look Stephen in the eyes.  
  
“What - hey you’re not staying the night?” There was disappointment laden in the engineer’s voice. He probably shouldn’t have expected it, though he had hoped. He couldn’t help but let his shoulders sag rather crestfallen.

The sorcerer frowned, before opening his eyes again to meet Tony’s gaze.

“I have a meeting at about 3AM, and I clearly need to get cleaned up and changed at this point…” He reasoned quietly, drawing small circles on Tony’s shoulder beneath the cloak. “But I’ll stay and tuck you in if you’d like.”  
  
Tony relaxed under the soothing ministrations on his shoulder. Those nails tracing patterns in his skin did soothe him some.  
  
“You couldn’t just get cleaned up and leave from here at 3AM? It would be really nice to have the company, you know after all this…” Tony’s voice was timid, but he honestly knew what the answer was before it even came out of Stephen’s mouth.

“It’s not like you have any travel time.” Tony argued, his arms tightening possessively around Stephen’s midsection as pressed in close again.

It honestly felt a little ridiculous that he even needed to barter for Stephen’s time with something like this. Perhaps he could propose staying at the Sanctum with Stephen and likewise being sent home at the designated meeting time?  
  
Would that even be an option? _He simply wanted company._

“Are you planning to stay awake with me for most of the night?” Stephen chuckled softly, relaxing back against the arm of the couch, content to have Tony cuddled against him.  
  
“If I fall asleep now I’ll be groggy trying to get myself together for the meeting. _Plus_ I still have to change into my robes - an illusion just isn’t going to cut it with these people, and while I don’t much care if they see all of this,” one hand moved to gesture to his neck, indicating the mess of bites and bruises, “- _someone_ did a number on my shirt.” Stephen placed his hand over Tony’s back to rub gently, feeling the raised skin he’d so recently clawed at.

“But I’m not rushing to leave, you know. If you’ll have me, I’ll stay until you’re ready to head to bed so long as it gives me time to get cleaned up and head out. Meaning, I was rather expecting you’d be sleeping before 2AM. Then again, I have no idea what your sleeping habits are like.”

Tony let the silence that followed afterwards hang in the air, he deliberated the proposal and stayed quiet until he was finally able to formulate his thoughts into words.  
  
“Yeah, maybe some of it may be falling asleep next to the person I want to spend time with, but I would also like to wake up next to them too...” He trailed off with an exhale.

“What if I came over and just stayed with you until the morning instead? I’d love to have you fall asleep in my bed but I want the whole deal Steph - everything.” He pressed into Stephen’s neck, shutting his eyes, trying to stay as close as possible.  
  
He was getting so used to Stephen taking off each night, he wanted to wake up with his companion in the morning again, especially after this… no matter which bed he woke up in.

"This means a lot more to me than you think it would… I'm really fond of you Stephen…”  
  
“I don’t know how late you sleep, but I won’t be back from my meeting until around 7AM. If you tend to sleep in longer than that… I’ll try and join you without disrupting you. That’s the best I can do tonight. Another night might be better if that’s not sufficient.” Stephen’s voice was low and quiet as he spoke, trying to come to some sort of compromise.

Tony absorbed the information as Stephen spoke. Stephen seemed to be tap-dancing around the whole ordeal. It seemed like it was a lot of unnecessary compromises, so many excuses for so many specifically small idiosyncrasies.

But the truth of the matter was Stephen had his own life, his own responsibilities and the idea had been replaying in his head over and over again that there were simply things that couldn’t be worked out between them due to their occupational differences.  
  
At the same time, there was so much that Stephen kept private, even if they were small things - they were enough to crawl under Tony’s skin. Tony was mostly an open book, or at least he considered himself one to Stephen.  
  
He finally pulled himself free from the sorcerer, his heart rate picking up some. He briefly placed a kiss on Stephen’s cheek before pulling away with a falsified smile.  
  
“You know what Steph? You’re right. Maybe tonight isn’t the night.” He felt his chest tighten but that was just the way things were. They both had their differences, something Tony would need to work through on his own time, or if not at all.

Stephen’s hold on the other slowly loosened to let Tony up and offered a soft smile of his own, seeming to buy the act.  
  
“I’m sorry. We can figure out something for next time maybe?” He offered lightly, brushing at Tony’s cheek rather tenderly. “I’m free on Thursdays, so perhaps a Wednesday night? But I’ve got a couple of hours still now…”

“Yeah… Yeah that sounds good.” He reassured, a little caught up in his own head in the moment. “I’ll reach out when the meetings break.” He slid himself off the couch, moving around the red fabric that had been draped across them to grab his pants and remove the condom. He grabbed a couple tissues and quickly wiped himself down, making himself decent before putting on his dress shirt, too lazy to do it up all the way.  
  
Tony chucked both the napkin and rubber in the disposal unit and went to wash his hands, toweling them off before he came back to sit down on the edge of the couch and finally buttoning up his shirt.

By the time Tony returned, as thoroughly ruffled as Stephen looked, he was fully clothed. One button seemed to have stayed attached and it was enough to at least keep the thing somewhat closed to give him some facade of decency, with the ring tucked under the man’s shirt, barely hiding under the surviving button. The cloak had settled around the sorcerer’s shoulders, looking a little out of place over Stephen’s dress attire, but came across rather more like someone had wrapped a blanket around him.

“It’s just bad timing.” Tony murmured to himself as he ran his hands through his hair and looked up at the television screen, zoning out into his thoughts.

“I’m sorry.” Stephen reiterated quietly, his words directed at the floor.

“It’s scheduling doc, there’s nothing to be sorry about - it can’t be helped.” He tore his vacant gaze from the television to look over to where Stephen hunched - plucking small black buttons from where they’d scattered on the floor - trying to keep things as casual as possible. “I really enjoyed the evening though.”  
  
Tony had some real issues of his own that he needed to deal with - he was upset and part of him just wanted to end the night here as things started to get awkward and a little suffocating. It had been a great night all-in-all but this gnat-of-a-feeling, that insecurity in the back of his mind - _yes that one_ from before - seemed to grow and spread.  
  
There was a constant mental war in his head right now, one that argued that he was acting like a child because he didn’t get what he wanted. On the other hand, this had been a long growing fear since they’d started out and perhaps there may be some truths to the whole ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’ idea.  
  
Slow growing insecurities.

The better part of him knew Stephen cared, but the wiser part always felt like the magus had one foot jammed in the door in case shit went awry. Tony was crazy, led a crazy life and Stephen quite frankly, wasn’t.

It was like a full-commitment just wasn’t something he was looking for in some way? The constant struggle against logic and anxiety was what made it so difficult and its unnatural and uncharacteristically pathetic construct tore down any semblance of confidence and swagger Tony normally so proudly flaunted.  
  
It made him question his own confidence in their relationship.

Stephen gathered the last of the buttons from the floor and simply looked at the handful for a few moments. The doctor offered a small smile, though there was a sincerity in it and his tone as he spoke.

“Tonight’s been amazing, thanks for setting all this up.”

"Until next time, and hopefully I'll get a full night out of you." Tony jested softly. "But it was nice, rain-check on _actually watching_ the movie."

"I don't know, _not_ watching the movie with you was a lot of fun. But I'll make every effort to give you all night, as requested, so maybe we could even get _both_ in." Stephen returned the other's humour.

Tony leaned down and collected all the leftover stray pieces of sushi and placed them into the largest tray. Any leftover containers were shuffled into the plastic takeout bag for later disposal. He cleaned off the table and carried everything over to the kitchen, tucking the leftovers into the fridge and disposing of the empty crates.  
  
“I guess I’ll call it for the night? Not sure if you wanted to take me up on lending you a shirt.” He smiled weakly, cleaning off the rest of the table before he grabbed his cardigan from the floor and slung it over his shoulder. He smiled some at Stephen’s attempt to hold his shirt closed with the missing buttons.

 _It was oddly adorable._  
  
"No, there's no need. It's not as though I'm walking home and I'll be hopping in the shower when I get back anyway. But thank you for the offer." Stephen didn't even attempt to smile again, his gaze downcast as he tried to straighten himself out some, before giving up. He gathered his shoes quietly, hesitating a little before the hand that wasn't holding his shoes reached to take one of Tony's, lifting it to press a gentle kiss to his knuckles.

"Good night. I hope you rest well."

Regardless of the elephant in the room Tony squeezed his hand around Stephen’s. He felt those lips press a chaste kiss to the top of his skin and as they made contact his chest tightened anxiously - and not in the good way. It had felt like some ethereal force had reached into his chest and wrung his heart out like a wet rag, enough for his voice to catch suddenly in his throat as he took in a breath. He extended himself, holding on to Stephen’s hand and not letting him go until he’d gotten into his space and placed a return kiss upon his cheek.  
  
The situation felt all kinds of wrong.

His mind was at war with itself, wanting to just be alone, but _not alone._ He knew Stephen was aware of his mood or the other would have stayed, possibly tried to cheer him up, even push further on the matter? It wasn’t Stephen’s job to be a mind reader or a babysitter and as forward and open as Tony could be in these moments - he could equally be just as closed off with his mental hangups.  
  
“You too, thanks again Steph, have a safe drive- er...” _That’s right, portals._ “-Portal home, and give Wong my regards.” He stepped back on his spot, hair a little bit of a mess, they both about looked the same - but somehow it didn’t matter so much about his own appearance or the others. He was mostly caught up in his own head, half there and half only lord knew where in some hidden away confine in his mind.

Stephen rested his forehead briefly against Tony's shoulder, curling his hand around the engineer's as tightly as his broken hands would allow and exhaled a soft sigh. He just as quickly straightened his posture as Tony moved away again.

His hands raised to open a portal that led into an odd little bathroom just beyond him, but he raised his eyes to look at Tony properly again after a moment.  
  
“I’ll see you soon.” He offered a small but warm smile before crossing the threshold into the bathroom of the Sanctum, the cloak offering a little wave of its own. “Sweet dreams, Tony.”

Despite the wonderful evening and company, the conclusion to it all was enough for a sleepless night. Too much ambiguity between Stephen and his personal life left a buffet for the mind to chew and muddle over. An empty bed and a full mind meant he was tossing and turning for at least an hour before he finally decided to do something about his restless state and go down to the workshop and tinker.

There always seemed to be something. _Something_.

Their night could never properly be concluded. He had all the heart in the world for the sorcerer but just as it seemed things were perfect, just starting to get good - something small would just utterly ruin it for him.

Stephen could come up with a million excuses making it seem their nights couldn’t be followed through. Not once since the bloom of their relationship had he been able to drag the man away from work for an entire day - and their first encounter didn’t really qualify given the mess it was. He constantly second-guessed himself on the matter - maybe he was selfish for thinking the sorcerer may have one entire evening to spare. Even a man like Tony Stark could shuffle plans around and he managed an entire company!

He could put his work down if he chose to do so, especially for things that were important to him.

 _Was he not important to Stephen_?

He’d not shown Pepper that courtesy many times and now that he was actually putting serious efforts into being better than he once was - it was all being thrown back in his face.

Tony was not a man of idle business, but a man of action so he couldn’t sit passive for too long or he’d go stir-crazy. If he was to be burdened by thought, at least he’d try to distract himself within his workshop rather than staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom thinking of how he’d possibly fucked everything up and picking away at their relationship as if the tiny grains and molecules of imperfections had tarnished the whole thing like a virulent plague.


	3. Full Circle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Insecurities drove Tony to cut himself off, busy himself with work and break his vow of abstinence, seeking out answers at the bottom of a bottle. And so he hit the bottom, rock bottom. But that was the solid foundation on which he used to rebuild their relationship.

The following day, Tony didn’t bother messaging Stephen.

He thought about it - he thought _long and hard about it._ Messages constructed and deconstructed as he grimaced at the screen and tossed his phone across the table with disdain.

Anger, _he was angry_. But at whom? Himself? Stephen? No, he couldn’t be upset at Stephen…

Was it his fault? Or not. His mind was like a cornered, rabid animal. Angry, defensive, scared and most of all...

_In pain._

He needed distractions, lots of them - excuses. He would deal with his issues like a _reasonable_ adult. And how he would do that? Bury himself alive in work.

It was as easy as getting caught up in business meetings he’d been eluding. Negotiations with S.H.I.E.L.D and partner companies, investors and suppliers. Lunches out with Pepper to discuss company plans and going through the compound to assure everything was secure and up to date.

Tony could busy himself more than he could make himself _look busy_ \- he didn’t need to pretend, and days could fly by with the amount of work he’d take on until the late night.

It never ended for him.

Eventually days had blown by in a blink until an entire week has passed and still he’d made no efforts to reach out. Though, his chest ached as the thoughts still swam - bleeding over into whatever personal time he had. Sometimes he would forget altogether why he felt that grief, why he was so upset - he’d managed to distract himself that much.

It was inevitable and it wouldn't go away. Something born of a mental conviction he’d placed upon himself that had only grown and festered further. He hadn’t felt as low as he did now since Pepper had dumped him and Ross was riding his backside about Steve’s open defiance of the Sokovia accords.

So ever being the man of responsibility he turned to an old habit to curb his sorrows. The only way he knew best, was at the bottom of a bottle.

Sleep was almost non-existent and his body seemed to run on caffeine and whiskey nowadays.

A phone full of unanswered texts in one hand from Stephen reaching out to him, each new message and vibration triggering his chest to constrict and that’s when he’d rest his mind under the warm blanket of a glass of whiskey.

* * *

One night in particular when Tony knew Strange was free, he’d received a message, concerned in tone. Stephen wasn’t an idiot, he’d long stopped reaching out within the first week upon being ghosted. Any sane human being could read the signs and nothing spoke louder _than being ghosted._

Tony had been curled up in the main room of his apartment looking out the window, sitting on the floor with a half-empty bottle of whiskey in the palm of his hand.

The nice thing about alcohol was it made you feel light and warm, made all the bad feelings go away or at least replaced those feelings - masked them if you will, with a haze of warmth and disorder in the mind. But with how heavily Tony had been consuming these days that warmth had gone cold and it was taking more and more to reach that desired point of comfort.

So the more he drank, the sicker he felt.

There were a couple bottles sitting beside him. He’d put back too much to work or see anyone - the whole day was a bust. And with the only means of putting back feelings like these from a sad, lonely man on his own being completely null, he had to sit there and just think.

Think of all the things that were good, and then think of all the things that weren’t - that went wrong and how he’d let it all simply deteriorate. He’d clubbed to death any semblance of a relationship with his bare hands.

Tony had something so perfect and at the first signs of panic or any hardship - he’d been a coward and not even tried to work through it. All things considered, their relationship had been old - but young. It had history yet had only been recently established.

His mind was going in circles, the good, the bad, and then the ugly. Chewing, swallowing and regurgitating his thoughts in a vicious cycle. It was like he was trapped spinning in a whirlpool without an undertow - dizzying and endless, and a current so strong it pulled and held him with no chance of escape.

“Boss I’m concerned that your blood toxicity is rising to a very unhealthy level.” Friday’s voice soothed in the dark room, and Tony just waved a hand in the air.

“Any more and I will need to call the facility’s paramedics to extract you.”

“I’m fine Fri.” Somehow he was able to keep the slur out of his voice. His movements, on the other hand, were sluggish as he pulled himself up against the wall to straighten out.

“Your vitals beg to differ, boss.”

Tony sighed and let the bottle slide out of his hand, paralyzed by his habit. He’d just been staring out the wall-sized window of the room, lights off, mulling over his thoughts in sequence and then replaying them over again.

* * *

In a room as dark as the one Stephen had portaled into the flickering of amber light was almost bright, the circular portal reflecting more gently in the glass of the window as the shadow of a man stepped through.

He took a few steps towards the kitchen in the low lit shadows, not noticing the room’s occupant as he set  down the box that had once held the very thoughtfully crafted ring and necklace in it.

Red fabric rustled as the sorcerer unclasped the piece from around his neck, opening the case and making motions to put the ring in its box - though he struggled with actually putting the ring away, cursing softly under his breath.

The cloak began to flit away, drifting towards the familiar presence it sensed despite Stephen not noticing.

The sorcerer set the ring and necklace quickly into the box and let the lid snap shut as he moved to gather up the cloak before it made any sort of noise or commotion that might disturb the home's inhabitants. It was only then that grey eyes settled on the man surrounded by his bottles and Stephen held the cloak tighter in his grasp before releasing it.

The red fabric was quick to drape itself over the disheveled brunette while Stephen maintained a distance between them. He was flooded with a series of emotions he didn't know how to process in that moment.

He summoned a glass of water, taking a couple short steps forward before kneeling to set it near Tony. The back of Tony’s head bumped against the wall and with effort he rolled his neck, turning to blearily watch Stephen.

The light of the portal disappeared and Stephen sat himself down beside him, far enough away to give him some space, but well within arm’s reach.

The engineer swallowed, the bottle knocked from his grasp as he palmed around for it at his side - gripping one of the empties instead in his haze.

"You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to... but I'm not leaving you here alone in this state." Stephen stated softly.

“Stephen…? What’re you doing here?” Tony blinked a few times. “If thiss’was Friday’s idea of calling for help...” He slurred, his blinking slow as his eyes struggled to focus on the man at his side.

“Negative boss, you haven’t reached that point yet. Though I would advise you put the bottle down.” Tony didn’t, his eyes continued to try and focus on Stephen.

With a short rote movement, the bottles cleared themselves from the space, the one containing alcohol - capped and tucked back where it belonged and the empties finding themselves at home in the recycling.

“H-hey…! I wasn’t done with that yet...” Tony’s hand went to reach out for the bottle as it had been _thoroughly_ confiscated from his person. His arm just as quickly fell slack as he’d made a valiant attempt to slump forward after it but found gravity - cruel  and unforgiving as it was, sent him back against the wall again with his weight.

"You should've been done with that a long time ago..." Stephen muttered softly under his breath.

The sorcerer watched him as he formulated his thoughts, concerned and unsure of how to explain why he was there.

The point had been to give his things back and simply leave Tony alone as he'd seemed to indicate with his lack of communication, but he cared too much about the other man to simply walk away when he was clearly not doing well.

Tony had made it plenty clear that he was abstinent - he didn't drink anymore - and this was _not_ the case seeing him in that moment.

This left the sorcerer worried in an entirely different way.

It was one thing if the engineer didn't want to see him anymore, if he'd somehow ruined things beyond repair, but it was another thing entirely to leave the man alone while he was being self-destructive.

He didn't know what had triggered it - was it something that had happened today? Days ago?

 _... Was_ it Stephen's fault? Had Tony fallen off the wagon because of him?

He might've been giving himself more credit than he deserved, Tony hadn't spoken with him in nearly two weeks.

Rather than explaining himself, Stephen simply shook his head.

"Would you rather I leave?" He realized after he asked how scared he was of hearing the things in his head put into words, his gaze falling away from the other man as he felt a slow twisting pain in his chest.

"I can see about having someone else look after you if you'd prefer. But this..." His voice was quiet, yet keen in the quiet darkness. It was barely more than a whisper but Stephen's tone grew softer still when he spoke again. "I don't want to leave you alone like this. I'm worried about you." Stephen’s heavy brow would hide the concern in his eyes as he hovered near Tony.

“No… no, no…” Tony trailed off, lifting a hand to place on Stephen’s shoulder as he squeezed it, head bobbing forwards like he was a rag-doll. “Don’t… go. Need you here...” He murmured between breaths, leaning his weight on the hand grasping the other man’s shoulder. His eyes bore down into their thighs- his head heavy, eyes glassy and bloodshot from over-consumption.

Stephen slid a little closer to give the man something more stable to lean on. His hand slowly coming up to cover the engineer's gently as he tried to determine what was okay - _what was he allowed?_

He  _wanted_ to collect Tony into his lap, hold him close and force as much water into his system as possible. He wanted to make sure Tony was okay, that he'd eaten before he’d started drinking. That he'd taken steps to ensure the following morning wouldn't be a nightmare.

He wanted to know if _they_ were okay.

But he didn't know... And without knowing, he was concerned about pushing the other too far - especially given that he already feared he'd done precisely that. In the state Tony was in, Stephen saw no point in pushing any conversation about _them_ , but it didn't change the fact that he was tempted to ask about what had gotten Tony into the state he was in. It seemed like a risky inquiry but he also didn't know whether Tony would _tell_ him when he was sober either.

After a moment of quiet, he finally gave in to at least _some_ of what he wanted, dragging the man over to sit between his knees, (with a little help from the cloak) before curling an arm around Tony and offering him the cup of water he'd conjured earlier.

There came no protesting from the inebriated brunette as Stephen towed him into his lap.

"Drink..." Stephen insisted in a soft husky voice.

Tony choked a bit but curled up compliantly within his caretaker’s lap, hands grabbing onto the fabric of the cloak as he drunkenly bowed his head under Stephen’s neck and propped himself against his collarbone. A shaky hand took the glass from Stephen and he paused, staring at it, heart palpitating in his ears.

Stephen's hand hovered near the glass as the other sipped before being sure Tony had a good enough hold on it. His other hand traced gentle patterns up and down Tony's back, tucking his nose into the man's salt and pepper hair and sighing despite the smile that threatened to settle on his face.

“I missed you…” Tony’s voice mumbled into the glass of water before softly groaning to himself.

"I missed you, too." He'd texted - _voice to text sucked,_ but editing was faster than him trying to peck out a message in whole, so he made do. He'd tried to make arrangements, but hadn't heard a word from the other and he wasn't certain if he should take the engineer's mumble as a sign that things between them were okay, especially when things were clearly _not_ okay with Tony.

Tony's groan seemed to punctuate that thought and Stephen's hand confiscated the water carefully as his clearly concerned expression focused in on Tony more pointedly.

"Hey- what's wrong? Are you okay? What do you need?"

Stephen was fussing but after spending more than a week straight worrying about Tony for a variety of reasons, Stephen found himself hard-pressed to care in that moment. He'd damn well mother Tony if he had to in order to make certain the man was alright.

Tony shut his eyes for a moment and relaxed against Stephen’s chest.

“I think… maybe I drank too much.” He whimpered again, hand rubbing his head. His face nodded back and forth slowly.

"No kidding you drank too much," Stephen chuckled softly in response, refilling the water with a wave of his hand before lifting it to offer to Tony. "Did you at least eat something solid before you started drinking...?"

“-Ww-hy are you here… Stephen.” He rasped out, shaking a little. Tony’s voice was low and scratchy, vocal cords abused by the repeated sting of the alcohol.

At Tony’s inquiry what little mirth Stephen had felt, fled and he simply held tighter to the smaller man, hiding his face in Tony's hair. Tony had asked pretty directly and he neither wanted to lie nor dismiss his question, leaving him quiet for a few minutes as he sorted things out, quietly urging the brunette to drink his water.

"I came to return your things." He finally answered, quiet and melancholy. "I figure if you don't want to speak with me anymore... then at least you should have them back. I didn't... expect you to be home. Or at least if you were I figured you'd be asleep and I wouldn't be intruding any further."

The feelings he'd had when he first arrived flared up again in recollection - a gnawing anxiety wracking through him. Even if Tony wanted him here right this moment while he was drunk, lonely and miserable, that didn't necessarily mean that _sober_ Tony would want the same. The recognition of that sat heavily in his chest as the arm on Tony's back stilled.

If Tony _didn't_ want him around when he was sober... he'd already started to come to terms with that possibility.

At least he'd have a chance to say goodbye. That didn't stop him from _hoping_ he was wrong.

There was a pregnant silence in the room until Tony dared to break it, the air starting to become suffocating, the closeness stifling but he didn’t move, almost catatonic in his spot.

“The ring…” He mumbled, not as a question but as if he understood why and had already formed his own conclusions to it. ”I had a feeling it was a bit much...” He let out another deep, shaky breath.

He pushed himself up off of Stephen’s chest - or at least tried to. His efforts to sit back failed spectacularly and it was only by the grace of the cloak catching him that he didn’t hit the tiled floor in his drunken stupor.

Stephen didn't hesitate to release him despite the cold ache he felt drilling into his chest when the man moved.

He gave Tony what space he needed, setting the ignored cup of water back down and resting his hands in his own lap, fingers twisted together in some weak emulation of how the rest of him felt.

"Not just the ring - but yes, that as well. To be clear, yes it was a little much. It felt like you were trying to... I don't know, _buy_ me I guess... I realised on Tuesday what it was, and what was meant by it. As much as I appreciate it, it doesn't feel right for me to keep it if we're... through. I never needed _things_ and I've never been very good at receiving gifts that I couldn't afford to buy myself." Even if it might've been barely a drop in the bucket of Tony's fortune, it didn't change the memories of being told he was a waste of money and his deep desire to avoid that issue again.

“I always got the feeling you weren’t serious about this… Like _this_...” Tony trailed off, still sitting between Stephen’s legs but on his knees in front of him. “... was just something that was never planned to be long term. And I pushed too hard and expected too much.” His voice was shaky, eyes downcast to his own lap.

Stephen listened quietly and attentively as the other man spoke, lifting a hand to run it into his own hair as he leaned back against the edge of the couch for support.

He had to acknowledge that when he looked back on his actions, maybe there _was_ some part of him that was holding back from fully committing to the relationship - he was afraid he'd open up too much and when it fell apart, all his glaring faults would be there to pick apart and pry at. It seemed a little ironic in hindsight that his holding back contributed to things ending.

Ultimately he wasn't surprised.

"I was afraid to hope for something long-term. I was _serious_ about it, but I can understand why you might've thought otherwise. I tried to warn you that I'm a terrible boyfriend." Stephen made an attempt at self-deprecating humour, but there was more derision to his tone than humour.

The sorcerer rested his hand back in his lap again and shook his head.

"I was so afraid you'd see the same things everyone else saw and you'd leave. I didn't really let you in to begin with, I suppose. Not fully. I'm sorry, Tony. You deserve so much better than that. I hope now at least..." He trailed off, finding the lump in his throat preventing him from finishing the sentence. He wanted Tony to be able to move on and find someone who could give him what he needed, but he didn't want to let go. He wanted to _be_ that person, but at this point it felt like too little, too late.

Tony’s head bobbed to the side as he tried to digest everything, his world was still spinning around him.

“You walked into this relationship with one’foot out the door from the start, it was already over before it started...” The soft rasp of Tony’s voice cut through the quiet lull  like a knife through butter. He braced his hand on the tiled floor and made an effort to rise but was unsuccessful as the world tilted on it’s axis.

He grasped his forehead, teeth clenched with a hiss as he was hit by a dizzy spell.

“You want to put a value on everything we do, that ring wasn’t something I bought - rather something I made, for you. I put my heart and soul into the things I did and yes, maybe some of it could be considered expensive, lavish... but that’s not the _point_.” Tony pulled his knees closer to his chest and he finally looked up to the man in front of him. “Everything I have now is because I worked for it, some of it inherited, but that doesn’t mean that even with the price it wasn’t something I had to put time and effort into earning. I’d hoped the measure of the thought behind the gift would supersede it’s tangible value.” His voice, wavering as he spoke.

He lifted his gaze to the man reflecting a deep sorrow.

“Stephen... this wasn’t ever about my wealth or trying to buy your affections. And if you want to sit there and measure everything I do by it’s price tag, pick and choose what you can and can’t accept because of whatever weird code you want to operate by - then that’s on you.” The tone of the brunette’s voice seemed to shorten, more aggression funneled into his words.

“I admit, I didn’t handle things properly. I got scared - scared that you made every excuse in the world to keep me at arms length no matter what I did. I’d put all my eggs into one basket.” He finally let his gaze drop, arms resting on his own knees as it was the only position he could sit in right now that didn’t cause the world to completely spin, eyes going in and out of focus.

“I walked in to this relationship testing the waters,” Stephen clarified. “I walked in to this relationship hopeful and excited, and afraid of letting you down. I wanted to take some time, to get to know you and _us_ in the context of a romantic relationship. I didn’t push because I respected that there were going to be things you weren’t immediately ready to talk about. Things that I would _earn_ perhaps.” Clearly he would not, but it was his own fault so he had no real right to complain.

“Testing the waters? Stephen that’s what we were both doing, that's what any new relationship does. Testing the waters for three god damn weeks? Usually you cut it off after the first couple dates if things aren’t working out.”

As Tony’s figure wavered, Stephen started to reach out to steady him, before withdrawing and leaving it to the cloak instead. The man was drunk. Articulate - a _genius_ \- but still drunk. He wasn’t certain having this conversation with Tony was _wise_ then, but he also wasn’t sure how much of it Tony would remember in the morning.

“You said you wanted to take things slowly, then handed me a _ring_ \- you, especially, should know what kind of a message that sends. I panicked… and on _Tuesday_ I realized that panic was unfounded and I was an idiot, but you still wouldn’t _talk_ to me, so realizing my mistake and recognizing the emotional value of it made no difference. It was too late, I guess.”

Despite his words, Stephen’s tone remained quiet, soft and somber. There was no bite of accusation - he blamed himself for letting things get to that point, and Tony drove that point home with surprising ease. There was no point trying to explain his issues with money, even in his own head it sounded like an excuse right then despite the very real effect it had on him, and Tony was in no state for that kind of discussion anyway.

Tony aimed a disdainful look at the floor, gaze traveling to the ring on the counter with as much focus as he could muster.

“...I don’t care if a ring was a _bold_ move, or what it represented. I doubt you ever put it on once to really understand _just exactly what it was_ , and I’m not just talking about wearing it around your neck.”

"I put it _on my hand_ on _Tuesday_ ." Stephen's voice was low but sharp when he spoke. "It was the first time I was able to write my name in a manner that was even remotely legible since my accident. But when I tried to text you wanting to talk about it with you _you didn’t respond_ . I’m sorry that I wasn’t moving _fast enough_ for you or somehow _perfect_ for you when you told me only bits and pieces of what you wanted. I’m sorry I couldn’t just put my duties on _hold_ to stay the night with you and that making plans for another night _wasn’t good enough_ but _I don’t always get what I want either_.” Stephen grit his teeth, bidding himself to calm.

“You should try and get some rest.” The sorcerer sighed as he pulled himself to his feet again, shaking his head. “Have some water… get some sleep. I’d say you’ll feel better in the morning, but you’ve rather ensured that’s not going to be the case.”

Prideful as ever, Tony managed to get to his feet. He grabbed on to the nearest thing - which happened to be one of the couch pieces in the sitting room and stand.

“Thanks for the help, but I can handle it from here doc.” The words were quiet and just above a whisper, but cold. ”I’ll be fine.”

Stephen made certain the cloak stayed wrapped around the man’s shoulders. He rubbed at his stubbornly wet eyes and gestured for the cloak to help the man stay on his feet at least, leaving the fabric to gently lift Tony, supporting him to stand in a way that Stephen couldn’t.

Instead he turned away, opening a portal to snag the larger boxes he’d meant to drop off and set them in the kitchen rather pointedly, only moving to open Tony’s bedroom door when he was sure he wasn’t on the verge of tears.

Tony had his back to the other man as Stephen furiously milled about the room, only the sounds of things being deposited around different sections of the apartment filling out the silence that crept between them.

Frustration. Hurt. Loss. It swirled around in Stephen rather mercilessly in that moment and he wondered briefly why he’d expected it would end any differently. There were reasons he didn’t have many friends - and he suspected Wong stuck around more out of duty than friendship sometimes. Why he figured he could sustain a relationship again he couldn’t guess.

Stephen shook his head and refilled the water glass to set it on Tony’s bedside table, fairly confident the man wasn’t going to bother to drink any of it and aggravated in his worry by the thought. Then there was the full recognition that he was a catalyst for the state Tony was in right now.

The sorcerer silently milled about the living area after, tidying things up to return it to some semblance of order again before he’d collected himself enough to wait by the portal.

Once the cloak had assisted Tony to bed, he’d leave.

“I’m not so sure you can. But at least have Friday call someone to help you in the morning when you’re purging your stomach. You’ll want the help.” Summoning up a piece of paper and a pen, Stephen sighed quietly to himself as he took the ring from the box and slipped it on a finger briefly, letting his hand settle and starting to write.

The engineer kept his back turned, grasping around at different pieces of furniture like a blind man until he gripped the counter top and saw Stephen scrawling something on a piece of paper.

“What are you doing?” He heaved, as he stumbled. He was basically hanging off the counter top trying to focus his eyes on the paper.

"Making sure your sober self is aware that I am still available for consultation if required, and also why I won't be available for _anything_ else." Stephen's tone had taken on a business-like cadence. "As well as the number for someone to help you deal with this relapse of yours, if required."

One sheet of paper already held detailed directions for what should or should not be consumed in the morning to help settle the man's stomach and otherwise return him to some kind of good health. But it would only matter if Tony cared to read them, to call on someone, or to even improve his health. But he said he'd be _fine_ and whether he was drunk or not, Tony was an adult.

He could take care of himself.

“And now you’re just insulting me. You act like this is the first time I’ve ever been shit-faced drunk in my own apartment. Writing me doctors notes for a god-damned hangover.” Tony shook his head with a cynical laugh, but it wasn’t funny.

He was completely missing the mark with Stephen’s efforts.

Once the second sheet of writing had been filled, Stephen pulled the ring from his finger, setting it back in its box and resting the box atop the papers to keep them from being knocked anywhere by accident. As he looked up to see the other bracing himself so heavily despite the cloak's help, his expression softened some and he sighed.

"C'mon. To bed. If you won't go yourself, I'll put you there, but you shouldn't be walking around in your state. Then I'll be out of your hair, you can do whatever you want, though I highly recommend water and rest."

Tony’s fist tightened in irritation on the counter but another dizzying wave and he stumbled a bit, wavering in his moment of aggression.

“I’ll be fine, just go…” Was the quiet response he added in afterwards with a heavy voice. He closed his eyes to blink something moist away.

"Stark you can barely keep yourself on your feet even with the cloak helping. I'd rather not take the cloak and leave you here with two left feet and nothing to catch you if you fall." Stephen's voice was measured, though he watched as the cloak's collar gently reached to brush at Tony's face in a familiar gesture.

His chest constricted, but he made no movement towards the other man.

He'd been asked to leave twice now, once more subtly and now outright - he wasn't going to crowd Tony and if Tony asked him again to leave he'd go, but no matter how insulting Tony found his coddling Stephen wanted to be certain the man was safe. His gaze dropped to the floor to give the man the dignity of pretending he didn't know Tony was crying, but it didn't stop his unsteady breath.

"I'm not worth drinking yourself into a stupor. And I'm _definitely_ not worth allowing for the concussion of one of the smartest men in the world, particularly when I doubt that for all your intelligence you'd make sure to take proper care of yourself. _You_ are worth _much more_ than this state you've put yourself in and I hope you can find yourself someone who can love you the way you need." A portal opened to Tony's room, offering the shortest possible distance to the bed without dropping the man onto it himself.

“Stop.” Tony’s voice was broken and hoarse. “Just stop. Stephen.” He let out a shaky breath. His shoulders shook and the comforting and coddling of the cloak only made things that much worse for him. He merely turned his face away from the cloak as it tried to flick at the wet stains on his cheeks with the red wings of its collar.

“You insult everything this was - everything we were. I can’t hear it, just please stop and _leave._ ” He shook his head, mouth dry as he swallowed the forming lump in his throat, feet planted firmly in his spot in open defiance.

Stephen simply nodded, closing the portal silently and opening another back to the Sanctum. He gestured quietly for the cloak, though the stubborn piece of outerwear hesitated before releasing Tony, even lingering near him for a few moments before settling itself on Stephen's shoulders one again.

The sorcerer stepped through the portal quickly enough the moment the cloak had joined him, uttering a quiet 'goodbye' as it closed behind him.

His fingers curled into the edges of the cloak and he said nothing to Wong, who sat watching him with an expression that spoke volumes about his confusion.

He then made his way to the solace of his own room to mourn.

* * *

Stephen felt like a teenager again.

Lonely. Hurt. Angry with himself. Everything he’d been working toward rendered meaningless as the only person in his life who’d motivated him and believed in him died under his watch.

He dreamed that _he_ was drowning, swimming deeper and deeper in his misery and hoping that somewhere in the depths of it all he’d find the light that had been keeping him going.

His sister. _Or Tony._

It blended together sometimes and in other moments it was more distinct, but he woke each morning with a crushing feeling in his chest that they were lost. All of them.

Himself included.

At times he found himself holding his phone, looking at Tony’s number and willing himself to just _call_ the man and make sure he was alright, but he never did. Tony hadn’t appreciated his attempts _before_ and he could hardly expect he’d like them any better _now_.

He was at a loss to figure out what was wrong with himself.

Selfishness, he assumed, was a root cause of things always falling apart, but with so many relationships - friendships and otherwise - ending poorly he had come to the conclusion that the common denominator was _him_ in general.

 _Stephen_ was the problem and no matter how many steps he’d taken to try and give Tony _more_ of himself than he’d given to others before, it wasn’t enough.

The sorcerer had come to the conclusion that him _attempting_ to date to begin with had been selfish. It didn’t matter that he was head over heels in love with Tony, he couldn’t _prioritize_ Tony over his duties to the world at large. He sacrificed too much too often to be able to sustain a healthy relationship and give Tony - or anyone else - what was needed.

He’d sacrificed himself in the past without question for the sake of the world, more times than he could count - he’d do it again, whether there was a relationship to consider or not, and he was reasonably convinced that that alone qualified him for a life rather devoid of romance.

It didn’t stop him from having a fling here or there perhaps, but nothing that meant commitment. He simply _couldn’t_ commit the way others did and it wasn’t right to place that burden on someone else, let alone someone he loved.

It was easy enough to note the uncharacteristic silence and lack of sass from the man who was called out on being lost in his own head too many times in the days that followed. His hand wandered to his neck now and then in search of the ring to fidget with only to find nothing and leave him more sullen than before, but at least attempting to remain present.

Wong didn’t even have to ask to figure out what was wrong, but he couldn’t determine who had broken up with whom. He only knew that he was unable to provide the man any kind of comfort and with his own duties to attend to he left Stephen alone with his books for the better part of two days.

* * *

 

Tony hadn’t touched any of the things on the counter tops. The note Stephen had left him, the box of shirts, the teas and the ring. All things he considered thoughtful and worthy gifts to a man who was in his own way a gift to Tony. Although Tony had made the mistake of exchanging things in return for something that was willingly handed to him, as if the very offering itself had been a insult.

Bits and pieces had come back to him as the haze of his mind cleared and he set to work, putting around his apartment and fixing himself up.

He’d woken up a mess and spent the morning expelling the contents of his stomach, wallowing in self pity and when he was done he reviewed the footage from the night before.

Friday had of course had video recordings of the conversation and Tony was left speechless at how callously he had handled himself. Witnessing the absolute sad mess that he was and seeing only in hindsight the selfless intentions Stephen had made him want to be sick. Sick at how he handled it, how he’d damaged further something that could have been salvaged. He’d taken a metal bat to his relationship and beaten it to death, and he watched it happen in front of his very eyes once replayed.

He’d spent the day in contemplation, thinking about what he did, what Stephen did and understanding that after this the sorcerer probably wouldn’t want anything to do with him, this all felt so _high-school._

His greatest fears were dug up, but he wouldn’t let that take him over - not this time.

Rather than a text, his finger hovered over the call button for a few moments, looking around rather ashamed, but after his deliberation he hit the send button and let the call go through. Contacting Stephen, without an idea of what he’d say other than to try and set things right at the next possible time. There were apologies he had to make and things he had to say and he was just about done hiding from it all.

The ringer went through and whether Stephen decided to answer or not would be a beast of another nature.

With each ring Tony’s heart grew louder, ever louder in his ears before it was almost deafening. Anxiety once again wormed its way into him like a parasite both dreading Stephen picking up or letting the phone just ring through. Worse yet? Turning his phone off entirely.

“Mr. Stark. How can I be of service?”

However none of his concerns ended up being the case. Stephen answered and he heard his voice on the other end of the phone. The low professional cadence in which he spoke probably hurt the most, but then again that didn’t matter because this wasn’t about him. Tony didn’t even try to mask away any of the almost neutral solemness that reverberated in his own tone.

He kept his request frank and to the point.

“When you have a moment Stephen… I’d like to talk to you. In person.” There was a pause after as he bit his lip. “I have some stuff I need to get off my chest and I owe you an apology.”

“I’m not available for social calls Mr. Stark.” Stephen’s voice didn’t seem to change much as he spoke, though the sound of shuffling books on the other end ceased. “And you have nothing to apologize for. What’s done is done. Is there anything else I can help you with?”

_Ouch, that stung._

Tony stayed quiet, frustrated on the other end of the phone, hurt, but desperate to make amends on the situation.

“Look...” He paused, taking an audibly shaky breath, his voice uneven. If he could just hold it together until the end of the conversation.

“I know you’ve probably had no trouble moving on after this but I haven’t. I just want to talk, do me this one courtesy will ya? I’ll leave you the hell alone for the foreseeable future after that… You have my word.” Tony’s head lolled to the side in his hand, running his fingers through his hair as his eyes slid closed.

There was a palpable silence after his proposal, one that dragged on and felt like minutes.

“I’m not exactly at liberty to be going anywhere - a point of contention between us if I recall correctly. Why is it so important that this meeting is in person?”

“Because I’m not going to say this over the phone. Give me a time. I’ll come to you.” Tony held the phone up against his ear, eyes idly wandering around the room. The air was thick with the tension - just like the night of the incident but there was only one way to put this behind them and it would be completely inappropriate to consider disclosing these matters over such an insincere method of contact.

"You really can't make anything easy, can you?" The sorcerer sighed softly, the professional cadence broke. "I'll be available until four."

More than six hours from then.

Tony let out the breath he didn’t even know he was holding, he didn’t even care that Stephen might be able to hear it. If he were in better spirits the sorcerer would have heard an amused chuckle on the other side of the phone and possible compliant ‘yep’, but he simply said his piece.

“I can be there in 15 minutes, thanks Stephen.”

What he had to say probably wouldn’t take more than 15 minutes depending on how their conversation went. He simply hung up the phone, putting it down before heading off to make himself proper.

As he was heading for the door he stopped, staring at the counter for a moment. His eyes lingered on the ring for a moment before he snagged it with a soft rattle off the granite top counter. He fingered it like it was precious, thumbing the platinum band before he slipped it around his neck, tucking it under the white collar of his shirt.

Thirteen minutes later and the sound of something heavy and metal hit the sidewalk outside of the Sanctum Sanctorum. Tony unsuited, the nano-bots receding into the housing unit on his chest. Tony had dressed himself as if he was going to a business meeting, tinted black glasses, dark grey suit and all.

It hadn’t taken long to get ready, he didn’t need the time. And with the god-like speed of the nano-suit it only took him mere minutes to reach Greenwich, almost as effective as one of Stephen’s portals.

Not bothering to straighten himself out he approached the Sanctum door, raised a hand and hesitated a moment, letting out a deep breath and trying to bid himself to relax.

He knocked on the large door, nerves firing at one-hundred percent and the flight over did nothing to calm his anxiety with how short a duration it had been. He folded his hands in front of him and waited for it’s tenant to let him in.

The door cracked open easily into the entry of the Sanctum. Compared to the bright blue skies and shining sun outside, the sizable, open sitting area seemed rather dark and dreary. But the light shone through the large window fixed high up in the Sanctum, illuminating the sitting area.

Stephen sat there quietly with a cup of tea that he was holding. He rested the cup and saucer in his lap as his gaze fell on Tony, taking in the glasses and suit briefly, before setting the cup and saucer on the table beside him.

“You’re early. Coffee?” The sorcerer offered by way of greeting.

He didn’t sound upset by the fact that Tony was earlier than the whole 15 minutes that had been assumed before. His hands already moved to pour the man a cup. He made a quiet noise at the cloak as it began to squirm a little and it was sufficient to still the cloak again.

Tony hesitantly stepped through the door of the Sanctum, he’d forgotten how dark it could be inside and with how dim the lights were and how little light was shed in the building one would think a blind man lived here. He closed the door behind him, slipped his glasses off, folding them into his pocket as he made his way over with slow deliberate steps.

“Fashionably, must have picked up the habit from someone I know.” Came the half-attempt at a light joke, but he didn’t linger on it and took a seat in the armchair adjacent to Stephen, watching him pour the cup for him.

“Thanks...” He stared forward, accepting the mug in his hands and cupped the warm porcelain mug as he mulled over how to start their conversation.

He’d gone over what he wanted to say in his head for hours this morning, building up the anxiety within his chest, trying to get it right and keep it to the point. He swallowed harshly, a silence between them - not terribly uncomfortable, but present and slightly tense as he made some motions with his hands as if he was ready to speak - but just ended up shaking his head at himself subtly and and pinching the bridge of his nose.

After another pregnant pause he finally spoke.

“I’m not going to waste your time... I have issues to sort out Stephen, so many problems... I’m a god damn mess and I really screwed the pooch on this one.” He fingered the mug in his hands clenching his teeth before speaking again. “Issues be damned, it’s all me, every part of what went wrong - I ruined this for us, for you - you didn’t deserve to be treated that way.” He let out a deep breath into the mug, staring at his reflection in the muddy brown liquid.

“I think it’s fair to say we _both_ know it’s not all on you.” Stephen sighed softly, turning away to pick up his tea again. “It’s never entirely the fault of one person when things fall apart. You may have contributed, but the fault is _not_ on you alone and it’s _not_ on you to take responsibility for it. I was callous and unable to provide you the things you needed.”

The sorcerer was quiet for a moment, leaning back in his seat and shaking his head a little.

“After some thought, I’m not sure I’ll be able to provide _anyone_ with the things they need in a healthy, sustainable relationship. So this is probably for the best and I should be thanking you for bringing it to my attention.”

Grey eyes settled on the window that openly displayed the seal of the Vishanti, fixing his gaze on it with a thoughtful look despite the bright reflections of the sun trickling through it. In ways he wore his sadness on his face, a sadness that would’ve been lost to most people for its subtlety, but was clear enough in the moment for Tony to see.

“I do hope that you’ll take the time to sort through the things that have you feeling like this. You’re a much less effective defender of this planet with your head muddled by alcohol, and I’m not going to pretend like I’m not concerned about your health and well-being... whether you want me to be or not.”

“You’d have yourself believe that, but I expected too much from you - you even said it the first day we met.” Tony laughed cynically. “ _You don’t work for me_...” He shook his head and fingered at the rim of the mug with his thumbs, still staring into the dark liquid.

“Pepper she...” He paused for a moment. “... when we were together, I got to see her every day, any time I wanted to.” He started tilting his head, biting his lip for a moment as he thought of what else he could say. “We were constantly around each other, had excuses to see each other because I was her boss, I had her in the palm of my hand.” He let out a deep breath.

“But you - it was something new, something I wasn’t used to. Let’s face it, I’m a spoiled rotten brat.” He turned a look to Stephen’s stoney disposition, a quick glance as he laughed again. “And I thought that I could just pull that with you, expect the same thing I had gotten so comfortable with… I didn’t even give this thing between us enough time before I started jumping ship and alienating myself. It’s always been the same, I ran away from Pepper to fight a war - whatever the reason it was constant. And then I ran away from you because I jumped to conclusions on things. Perhaps I should have gotten in your face more rather than hiding away… My own insecurities drive my constant need to be around the people I care for and when I struggled with that I panicked.” He looked up from his mug, staring into the space in front of him.

“I’m just rambling at this point…” He sighed.

Stephen took a quiet sip of his tea before setting it in his lap again, hearing the quiet but clear rattling of it against the saucer with how his hands shook before he placed the cup and its saucer aside to rest his hands on the arms of the chair. The sorcerer closed his eyes for a moment before fixing his gaze on the window again in thought.

“Not all of the conclusions you came to were incorrect, but I would agree that hiding away isn’t much of a _solution_ to the problem so much as an _avoidance_ of it. That’s a good lesson to take from everything.”

He thought about what he’d done to get them here and what he could potentially _say_ to fix this. He didn’t expect to patch things up today, that would be a miracle from his perspective to say the least - but it wouldn’t stop him from trying anyways.

Tony was never the type to roll over and simply admit defeat in the face of adversity.

There was another long pause while he bit his lip and picked his words carefully.

“I fucked up.” He started softly. “And I guess I came here because I didn’t want to see this relationship go down - not this way…” He held on a pause.

“Stephen, I’m deeply and incredibly in love with you.”

_There, he said it._

He looked up from his glass, looking him in the eye.

“I’m willing to fight for this, for _you_ … To be patient, and understanding… If you’d allow me to. I-” His voice got shaky and he looked away, having a hard time looking at the sorcerer.

It felt like he had his head in a guillotine and he was just waiting for Stephen to drop the blade.

_His executioner._

His lip quivered but he raised his cup quickly, cleared his throat and recomposed himself again with a deep exhale into warm-radiating liquid.

“I take it you missed the part where I said I can’t provide the things required for a healthy and sustainable relationship.” Stephen’s voice was low and quiet when he spoke, his expression sad but steadfast. “I love you. I’d love more than anything to make this work… but even if we _could_ make it work, that would put you in a position that I’m fairly comfortable saying would be cruel to put _anyone_ in, much less someone I loved and who loved me.”

Stephen’s eyes settled up on the window again and he sighed softly.

“I can’t prioritize you over my duties. I can’t allow _one man_ to be considered _more important_ than the rest of the world. I’ve put you through enough already with what happened on Titan… and I’d do it again without hesitation if it meant keeping the Earth, and the people on it, safe.”

The sorcerer gestured to the window rather pointedly.

“I don’t leave the Sanctum often because I’ve _seen_ what happens if all three of them go down. I’ve paid that price with every part of me. I’ve died thousands of times, in thousands of ways and would have continued to allow myself to die for all eternity if that’s what I had to do. And that’s only _one_ of my many nightmares… and none of this even accounts for my own myriad personal failings.”

His eyes found Tony again after a moment, sadder than before.

“... So I can’t, Tony. I can’t give you what you want, or what you need. My demons will come for me permanently one day and I’d leave you with nothing. No goodbyes. No answers. Just an emptiness… or worse, the false hope that I’ll somehow come back. And I don’t want to leave you waiting for the rest of your life. You deserve better than that.”

Tony rolled his head, overtaken by a nauseating feeling. He’d just received a metric overload of information. The floodgates opened and out it all rushed out in a torrent, there was so much information here that he didn’t even know where to start - it was so overwhelming.

“Stephen you’re not the only one that this world has looking after it. What do you think I do all day? We sit here and risk our lives across different planes of existence, different planets, worlds - you think that the crux of this entire universe is yours to bear?” Tony almost wanted to get angry at how much Stephen had sunken himself into his role.

“The whole point of the Avengers is to protect the world, to work as a team, and everything you said right there could be said for me - and it has happened. I certainly can’t do this alone and it’s why I have people like you in my life, or did.” His voice cracked and he stood up from his chair placing the cup down on the table as he turned to face him.

“The difference between the two of us is I don’t deny myself the right to having a life. You don’t think I’m constantly worried about a greater possible threat out there - worse than Thanos?” Tony pointed up to the sky as if to gesture to some unforeseeable deity.

“It’s your choice if you want to live in fear, alone Stephen - but don’t you dare talk about it like it’s something you never chose and brought upon yourself.” Tony balled his fist up by his side, and then quickly released. He let out a deep breath looking around the room before sitting down and turning away.

“I’m scared shitless that one day I’m going to wake up and I won’t be able to protect the people I love. I have nightmares about another alien invasion tearing through the sky - but guess what? I don’t push everyone away because I’m somehow worried I’m burdening them. No. I keep them close to me and and I enjoy my time with them for what it’s worth - and should a threat arise, I’ll be there to fight until I can’t damn well stand anymore.”

He ran a hand through his hair and let out a deep sigh.

“Maybe you should take a page out of my book and for one damn moment in your life think about what _you want_. I’m not asking you to abandon your post, or your duties as a Sanctum Master either.”

Stephen fell quiet as Tony harangued him, and the silence lingered between them for a time.

Tony had just about exhausted his mental resources with that argument, if it didn’t sway the course of things then he had no idea what would. But now he clearly had a fish on the line, a bite and regardless of the size he was going to reel it in.

This one wasn’t going to get away.

“So what happens if we try this again?” Stephen finally asked, looking much less resolute than he had before. He sounded almost meek at first, before he looked up to watch Tony with uncertainty. “What happens if we try to fix this? What do we do differently to make it work?”

He looked at Stephen, so utterly exhausted in his chair, his hazel eyes locking with Stephen’s grey-blue gaze in the shaded room.

“We communicate with each other… As dumb and simple as it sounds that really was the downfall of all this. Compromise.” His hand fisted and he lightly bounced it off of the rest of the arm chair, not in anger but to help him draw his words out.

“I could be a little more - a _lot_ more - patient with you… It’s worth it for me. And you? Well, think about the things you _want_ and not the things that you need to fear losing… If that’s really where all of it stems from.” His voice was quiet and soft, no more jittering to his tone.

Tony had composed himself and with that little ray of hope he chose to bask within it. It felt like the tension had lifted and he was making some headway with his testimony.

“I know I’m willing to do anything for you, Steph.” He added quietly and the corners of his lips turned upwards in a small sheepish smile, this time without a hint of cynicism behind it. ”As far as things were going, they were already _working_ … I just, never gave it time to pan out...”

“We said _before_ that we’d communicate. In fact as I recall I touted communication having been one of our strengths when we started this out and yet here we are. I admit, that’s partially on me. There were things I wasn’t ready to talk about because I was afraid they’d drive you away. And they _did_ drive you away, but it seems to be because I _didn’t_ talk about them rather than because I did.”

“No - Stephen you see that’s the thing. You advocated for the whole communication thing but yet you get on my back for it. I’ve already admitted I did wrong - and I’ve also acknowledged I’d do right by it too. The thing that’s going to drive a rift between is that right there - that ‘I’m going to drive you away’ self-sacrificial hero B.S. I’ve heard a thousand times.” He started to rile a little with his speech.

Stephen sighed a little and ran a hand into his hair as the cloak wiggled. Stephen did a fine job ignoring it at first, despite its insistence. After a few more moments, he finally got to his feet to see what the cloak was up to, only to find himself being gently nudged towards the chair Tony was seated in.

Despite his hesitance on the matter, he allowed the cloak to drag him towards Tony, though it seemed to flutter away on its own after depositing the sorcerer in front of the other man’s chair.

“I _do_ love you, you know. My timing in saying it was… terrible… but I love you.” Stephen crouched himself in front of the brunette, gently resting his hands on Tony’s knees palms up in silent askance. “I _want_ to make this work. I want to spend my life with you, and I don’t expect everything will be sunshine and rainbows…” He chuckled softly. “I can be a _very_ selfish and self-centered man. That’s how I’ve ruined every other relationship I’ve been in. So if you want me to be selfish, then I’m counting on you to call me out if I take it too far.”

Tony softened and tilted his head to look at Stephen before lightly grabbing his forearms and pulling him in to sit on his lap. Stephen settled there and slowly curled his arms around Tony, sinking his head against the brunette’s with a soft sigh.

“See at least when you’re selfish we both get the things we want.” Tony murmured quietly, fastening his arms around Stephen’s waist. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead into his side, letting out a deep breath. “I’d rather call you on your bullshit than not be able to call you at all on _anything_ for your selflessness. God… I love you, you mean the whole damn world to me. I know what I'm getting into..."

“I wasn’t… trying to blame myself. I was trying to acknowledge my contribution. I could’ve been more open and communicative, yes. But you could’ve given me more time to get there. There’s more than one way we could’ve done better, each of us individually and both of us together. I’m worried that if I _don’t_ acknowledge these things then you’ll take on the burden of guilt yourself, like you did when you walked in here today.”

The sorcerer’s voice was quiet and gentle, explaining rather that accusing or defensive, but there was a distinct wavering to it as he fought back a heavy wave of emotion. They hadn’t really been _this_ close in more than two weeks and Stephen’s eyes were leaking stubbornly and clearly despite the calmness of his tone.

“In _this_ case my being selfish means we both get what we want. That’s not always going to be the case. So you just make sure you _do_ call me on things if I get too caught up in it all. _Politely_ unless you’re looking for a fight,” he added with a soft chuckle. “Not that I won’t indulge you in a good fight, as long we can agree not to go to bed angry with each other.”

“Well I dunno, I feel like I really handed it to you a couple nights ago when I was shit-faced.” Tony let his voice trail off, adjusting his forehead and rubbing it there, taking in a deep breath and letting it slowly out through his mouth. His eyes cracked open a bit to look at Stephen’s, moving some so he could lightly place a kiss at the corner of his eye rather than moving his hand to wipe the tears away with his fingers - _he was comfortable dammit_.

“If you want a total bitch fest, I can give you a bitch fest. I can also do kicking and screaming - you name it. But I’ll call you the hell out if I need to.” He let a soft chuckle rumble through his chest as he put a little distance between their faces so he could sit back and actually look Stephen in the eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere this time, I promise.” He started to run his hand slowly up and down along Stephen’s spine to try and calm him down. The hardest part about this entire fiasco wasn’t the time spent apart, or how he felt - but how Stephen felt and the toll it took on him.

At least now it was hopefully put to rest.

“The point is, you were shitfaced. I’m not going to hold the entirety of your behaviour while you were intoxicated against you. You were drunk and you were hurting.” Stephen’s fingers brushed at the other’s hair gently, the corners of his eyes wrinkling a little with a smile as Tony’s lips brushed away the trail of tears.

“But yeah, you were _kind of_ an obstinate dick. I don’t think I’m much of a fan of drunk Tony. I definitely prefer your intoxication to be different, if you’re going that route. Spores, in particular.” His words started off more serious, though his tone reflected a hint of the gentle teasing of his words by the end of it.

“I think I can lay off the booze for the foreseeable future if that’s something that will make you happy.” His eyes darted between Stephen’s, and at the first sign of a smile - a real, genuine smile, his heart melted right then and there. “And I’m also not going to deny it, that whole dick comment - that stands true regardless of whatever state of mind I’m in, you know that right? That’s nothing new.” He narrowed his eyes with a sly smile, squeezing Stephen’s waist.

“There’s a difference between you being a dick and you being an obstinate drunk dick,” Stephen clarified, though he continued to offer the other a gentle smile. “One of these things doesn’t prevent me from making sure you’re in good health. And I was _very_ worried about you hurting yourself. So if you’re not against staying sober - or at least making sure your drinking stays moderated - then yeah, that would do wonders for alleviating some of my worry. I can at least trust a _sober Tony_ to take care of himself to a degree.”

“Oh I love jokes like these, let me guess the difference: one fucks you and the other just fucks you over.” In response to his playful tone, Tony couldn’t help but make a wisecrack response. Though the comment about alcohol was a different matter entirely.

At the mention of Tony and his ability to take care of himself, he was about to speak up and contradict Stephen’s argument until he finished ‘ _to a degree_ ’ and quickly stopped himself.

“Hey, you said it not me.” Stephen grinned.

“Everything I do has to be a show, that’s just who I am.” He tucked his head underneath Stephen’s chin and closed his eyes. It was a return the familiar, to something he’d missed so much, convincing himself that he wasn’t going to have this all back again.

Who would have thought? Tony’s life wasn’t all that bad.

For a few moments Stephen was quiet, taking a few deep breaths as though echoing Tony’s earlier breaths, trying to settle himself down. Finally, he nudged at Tony’s cheek with his nose, closing his eyes and sighing softly.

“Will you stay tonight?”

At the request to stay the night the brunette was caught off guard. Obviously he didn’t expect it but it was a welcomed invitation and he’d be a fool not to take it up.

“You don’t need to ask me twice, at least one of us is going to get a good night’s sleep.” He mumbled softly. “As long as you don’t have some weird sleep-fighting disorder I think I’ll be fine.”

Stephen chuckled softly, though it was quickly smothered in a kiss that he couldn’t bring himself to protest to. He rested a hand on Tony’s cheek and offered the man a heartfelt smile as he pulled away.

“I’ve missed you and if you’re not going to be too busy tomorrow, I’d be happy to have you for the night. By which I mean, don’t expect to get too much rest. I’m a kind of fitful sleeper…”

“Hey! At least you didn’t wake up your ex in the middle of the night with one of your suits trying to kill her.” He looked away a little embarrassed. “Something tells me we’re going to turn into one of those couples where one of us gets banished to the couch every some-odd night.” Tony feigned worry. “If you’re having nightmares Steph, I’ll be there to calm you down and bring you back to reality - take it from a guy who runs on coffee and gets about no sleep. I’ll probably get the most sleep I’ve had in years if I stay the night with you.” He soothed, finally removing a hand from around Stephen’s waist to run his knuckles along the side of his jaw.

“I haven’t shared a bed with anyone since Christine and I split which was well before my accident and the nightmares starting.” Stephen’s smile faded as he sighed. “I know I was hesitant to stay the night with you because I _don’t_ know what I’m like when I sleep anymore. I know I have nightmares and wake up in a cold sweat with pillows on the floor and blankets everywhere, if I’m lucky enough not to be completely tangled in them. I also know that not everything I dream about is as simple as being a dream… but if I’m sharing my life with you, I have to start somewhere. And right now, I really don’t want to let go of you for a while. I missed you and I didn’t know if I’d get this chance again.”

Tony squeezed Stephen at the soft admission, tucking himself in closer.

“I mean, that night you passed out after retching your guts out you slept like a rock, and I definitely had no complaints on the matter in the morning - but didn’t you say you had a thing later when we were on the phone? You’re not going to be hauled off?” He asked inquisitively, he wasn’t trying to cause a problem - just a passing thought on the matter from what Stephen had told him earlier before he’d come to the Sanctum.

Stephen chuckled a bit as the other tucked against him and his fingers continued to absently comb through brown locks contentedly, closing his eyes and humming a quiet agreement.

“I was going to meet with Christine for dinner. If you wanted to, you could join us, or I can drop you off at your place so you can gather clothes and such. I could then pick you up after… or I can just cancel. “

“Don’t cancel your plans, I don’t feel I’d offer much to the situation though. How about you clucking hens go have your dinner-date and you can swing by and pick me up afterwards?” He pulled his head out from underneath Stephen’s chin and look at him with a soft lopsided smile.

“Just don’t eat too much, save some snacking for later - maybe I’ll let you eat something off of my body.” Tony winked with a devilish cackle, his own smile in full bloom once more. He then closed his eyes, leaned up and gently snatched up Stephen’s lips in a slow, gentle kiss. The clicking of their lips was all that was heard when Tony pulled away.

“My dinner with Christine was meant to be a bunch of me going ‘so that _amazing_ guy I was talking about? Yeah, I fucked that up - let’s have some drinks and commiserate.’ But it sounds like that’s not going to be a concern. So on the other hand I figured why not just _bring_ that amazing guy I keep talking about without naming him - you know, introduce my boyfriend,” He said the word with only the slightest hint of hesitance, as though afraid Tony might decry it, “I’d rather be picked on by two people I care about, than sitting with one while mourning the other by a long shot. At least now I get to show you off.”

Tony let out a boisterous cackle endeared at the term Stephen had referred to him by.

“Am I going to be your _trophy_ boyfriend for you to _show off then_?” He feigned surprise, absolutely having no reserves about the idea of Stephen showing him off to his ex, or even showing him off in general. Tony was the literal personification of a peacock, he thrived in intense social situations and it would bring him no greater delight than to be put on a pedestal by the man he loved.

“Well, _one_ of us has to show you off and if you do it they call you egotistical. If _I_ do it I’m a good boyfriend.” Stephen responded, his smile growing further. He watched Tony fondly, threading his fingers through the engineer’s hair as he chuckled. “I could show you off in front of whomever you like, but I thought starting off quietly with a friend might be ideal. I’m also not trying to pressure you about this. If you’re not ready for a more public relationship, I’m comfortable with keeping it quieter and more personal. I can have Christine by the Sanctum some time if you want to meet her that way rather than going out or… you know...”

“Why on earth would you think I wanted to be quiet about this? My business is my own but if people find out that’s just how it is.” Tony gave a light shrug. “None of this needs to stay quiet, but I’m also not going to call up the media as soon as I have someone new walk into my life. Dinner sounds nice - I haven’t eaten anything all day really so I guess my hunger’s finally catching up to me.” He squeezed Stephen.

“If anything I’d be worried about the media sticking their noses into your business - they can be a real thorn in your side.” The last thing he would want was to have people stalking or trying to get into the Sanctum. He didn’t imagine Stephen would be too keen on having cameras and reporters following him around just by association, given how private Stephen’s life was.

“I’m a lot less concerned about the media. The Sanctum doesn’t have door handles, you might have noticed. No one gets to come in without being _invited_. And I don’t need the front door to come and go. If I don’t want to be seen, I won’t be. That easy.” He offered the man a reassuring smile, gently nudging his cheek with his nose and he pressed a brief, happy kiss to the corner of the man’s mouth.

“-Oh, before I forget… I know you don’t like gifts...” Tony started to fidget a bit, awkwardly maneuvering his arm so he could reach into the collar of his shirt. There was a soft jingle as he grasped the chain and ring from around his neck.

He slipped the loop over his head and held it in the palm of his hand, offering it up to Stephen once more with a hopeful look.

“I’m not going to shower you in gifts _for now_ , but I figured maybe you might want this one back? I know _I want_ you to have it back.” Tony displayed the small platinum band in his hand, it was warm from where it had sat around his neck.

The ring was plucked from his hand. Tony closed it and moved his palm along the front of Stephen’s tunic.

“I promise it doesn’t mean anything more than being a gift, and you know why I made it for you.” He added trying to save his own hide on this one. “I didn’t get the chance to explain it to you before but it’s a stabilizing aid that uses a combination of magnets and bearings to counterbalance the tremor in your hand.” He idly thumbed at the indigo collar of Stephen’s shirt.

“... _Thank you_.” Stephen responded quietly, slipping the chain around his neck and resting his hand over the ring. His fingers played with it, there was a certain restless pleasure to his ministrations. “I kept reaching for it but it wasn’t there… it was so off-putting, I didn’t realize I’d been doing it so much until it was gone.”

“God, I know you doctors have awful handwriting but the shakes must make it so much worse. I’d hate to have you writing my prescriptions.” He laughed, bringing his free hand up again to brush over Stephen's cheek, looking at him. “It’s obviously not a permanent solution - it’s just a physical therapy aid.”

“Mmm, my sister used to joke that I was going to be the perfect Doctor because my writing was impossible to read,” Stephen chuckled softly, leaning in again to rest his head against Tony’s. “I’m not looking for a permanent solution to my hands anymore. I haven’t for years. I had the choice… I could have my hands and my career back, but it would mean channeling all the magic I had into them and leaving nothing for anything else. I chose the world and I don’t regret that. So, as long as it’s not terribly offensive to you, I’d prefer to keep this around my neck unless I _am_ trying to write or text. Close to my heart is the best place for it.” And maybe one day it _would_ mean more, but they had a lot to work through before that.

Tony just stared at him when he mentioned wanting to wear the ring around his neck rather than his hand, he looked a little bug-eyed for the moment while he digested the information. It had to be about one of the sweetest damned things he'd ever heard Stephen say to him aside from dropping the ‘L’ bomb on him.

“You wear it however you like, it means a lot to me that you’d even wear it at all - you don’t need to explain to me about self sacrifice. I mean, this damn thing right here-” he tapped his arc reactor, ”-has ruined a lot of stuff for me, but it’s a necessity to me now, part of me. I could have chosen to get rid of it - I don’t need it anymore but it’s still there. I can imagine choosing your hands over your abilities would be to the same effect.” He thumbed lightly at the silver streaks of hair just above Stephen’s ears.

“I missed this…” Everything in that moment once again felt so perfect, like a huge burden had been lifted from his chest and everything was suddenly aligned and in its proper place. Those light fluttery sensations had been awry in Tony’s stomach and he was more than happy to indulge in those senses.

“I missed this too. Luckily, we have a good few hours before we have to move from here…” Lots of time to indulge in the closeness and affection they’d been missing. Stephen peppered a few soft kisses at the corner of Tony’s mouth with a gentle hum.

Tony’s stomach rumbled and he looked a little rueful, he hadn’t known what to expect when he’d come over but with everything that had happened, he’d surely miscalculated the amount of time it would take.

“Something to eat is really sounding like a good plan now, god only knows my stomach’s about to start eating itself.” He yammered on all while Stephen slowly placed those little kisses at the corner of his mouth. “No sweets though, I’ve been getting all the sugar I need from you.”

Another soft chuckle and he tapped Stephen and nodded towards the kitchen so the man could let him up.

“So funny thing, I have this big _box_ of teas at home and _I don’t drink tea_ …”

“ _Oh no!_ I guess you should _find someone_ who likes tea! Or maybe consider drinking it yourself?”

“Don’t you have a _roommate_ or something who likes tea? _Wong?_ That guy I never see anymore?”

“... Tony if you give Wong _my tea_ we’re going to have a _very serious discussion_.”

“ _Oh_ but you _don’t like_ gifts!”

“ _Tony._ ”

 

**END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here we are! At the end, finally! The end for us, anyway - it's a new beginning for them. It's been quite a journey to get from the more lighthearted beginnings of the Effects series to this point, but it's done! Anything further will simply be little explorations of their dynamic in this story, and there's no guarantee about any continuations - we have a lot of things planned for other stories!
> 
> Personal Effects was a great opportunity to explore some of the more grounded reality of relationships and the struggles and issues that crop up in them. No relationship is perfect - especially when starting off! - so being able to explore some of the highs and lows, miscommunications and break-ups, and acknowledging issues with the intent to improve has been an interesting venture.
> 
> So thank you guys for sticking with us, and I hope we were able to provide you with a good time!


End file.
